Deva 04: Endless Waltz
by Daishi Prime
Summary: Deva Series 04. Sequel to Academy Blues. Hayate, her family, and their students face new tests, new challenges, and a deadly civil war. AU.
1. 00 The End of the Beginning

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

"Atarsamain? Why are you hiding in here, my love?"

She looked up from the shallow bowl of water as the interruption broke her concentration and the vision faded. Blinking tears from her eyes, and smiled sadly at the man standing in the entrance of her tent. "Come in, Merudach. I did want to speak with you one more time, actually."

He frowned at her, "What are you speaking so sadly for? It's over, we won! The Masters are gone! Destroyed by their own weapons! Tonight is a great victory, a time for celebration. Why are you secreted away in here? Do you mourn for the dead? Commendable, my wife, and we will have proper memorials on the morrow, but tonight is for..."  
She cut him off with a gentle wave, "No, Merudach, I do not grieve for our lost ones. I grieve for us, and for our children. We have failed them, and nothing we do to atone for that failure will have any effect."

The slightly-drunken good humor with which he had entered their tent vanished completely, replaced with the serious focus that she had always seen on his face since she and Isis rescued him and his brother. "What have you seen?" Gone was her husband, and once more he was First Mage of the Grand Circle.

"I have seen our doom, and that of our children. The Masters are not gone, not destroyed. Their last folly bound them away, where they cannot touch the world again. But I have seen it, Merudach. I have seen how our own folly, our descendant's folly, will set their knowledge loose in the world again. In pursuit of error and fear, our children's children will free the Masters' legacy and destroy our world, and nothing we can do will stop it."

"You keep saying that, Atarsamain, but fatalism is not like you. We have overcome terrible odds before, we and our descendants can do so again."

"We do not face odds created by mortal opposition, my husband, but time and death moving against us in unison. The Masters cursed us, even as they fell. All those who bear their blood will die, within the season, of a wasting sickness I can feel eating at my powers even now. Those conceived but not born before the fall may survive, but there will be so few, and none of us to teach them. Our libraries are gone, destroyed by the Masters years ago. We saw no reason to rebuild them in the face of the Masters hostility, and now there is no time." She looked down at the bowl again, remembering the scenes of horror and devastation she had witnessed within its depths, and felt her tears return. "Nothing of us, of our struggles, our triumphs, and our mistakes, will be remembered. Only myths and legends, and a few descendants trying to preserve traditions they do not understand, do not even fully remember. I have seen it, seen it all. It is all I see, now, when I gaze into our future. My sister sees nothing more than I do. Only Kessenra sees hope, and that but a dim light of possibility, for she cannot see the source of that hope, only the shadows, deceptions, and deaths that surround it."

Merudach settled next to her, wrapping his arms around her, trying to be comforting without fully realizing why he had to be. "We still have time. The turning of the season is weeks away. We can create records, teach the basics..."

Atarsamain shook her head sadly. "Haven't you noticed the quakes, Merudach? They will worsen soon. The world, this union of peoples we have built to oppose the Masters, will crumble under fire, flood, and sickness. Nothing of our works will remain." She wanted to continue, but a twisting pain in her stomach cut her off.

She thought she hid the flinch well, but Merudach's grip tightened. "What is wrong? You are in pain. Why?"

"I... I can't do this anymore," she broke down for true now, wracked by guilt more than pain now, "I have fought them for so long, so many decades. I have given so much, journeyed unto death itself to bring you back, buried too many friends, buried my own first son. I have seen the rest of my children die in my visions, Merudach, I... I cannot stand to see it for true. It is too much." His grip tightened again, and she suddenly felt his tears falling on her cheek. "I'm sorry," she continued, "I am so sorry, but I cannot do it any longer. Please, forgive me?"

"There is nothing to forgive, my love," he whispered, "nothing at all. You have given everything and more for our cause, I could not begrudge you your peace."

"I'm sorry," she repeated softly, "I wish I could stay by you, help you. But I have no more strength. I used it all up to bring us here, and now to see it all for naught, I... I just cannot..."

"Shhh," he told her, "you have nothing to apologize for. You owe nothing to anyone save yourself and the gods, and they will not judge you for this. I will do what I can for our people and our hopes, my love. Sleep, dream. We will be together again soon."

"Sing for me," she whispered, remembering how he had sung at their wedding, "sing me to sleep, my heart, like you used to."

He did not speak, merely held her tighter for a moment, nodding. When he did sing, his resonant voice was thick with sorrow. She faded into darkness, hearing his words, and the pain was nothing, as peace finally came to her tired soul, and the visions of blood and darkness faded into nothing but light, and the sound of his voice...

00000

Cidela found Shamal where she had expected to, in the kitchen working on dinner, an activity the healer seemed to find therapeutic. Cidela had come to realize very quickly that, despite Vita's stories about when they first came to serve Hayate, the more upset Shamal became, the more she cooked, and tonight she was making enough for an army. She did not comment on it now, understanding the reasons, just smiled a little sadly, and asked softly , "Okaa-san? I'm packing my last bag, but I can't find the copy of Luadier's Grimoire Hominus you loaned me. Did you take it back?"

Shamal looked up from the counter, smiled at her briefly, then thought it over. "I don't believe so. That was the white one, with the DaVinci sketch on the cover, ne?"

"No, Okaa-san, the DaVinci sketch was on the old copy of Grey's Anatomy I used for the historical comparison back in July. Luadier's Grimoire is a dark green, and has a skull in profile on it."

"Ah, that one! Yes, I did take it, I'm sorry," Shamal gave her a slightly guilty smile, "I needed to reference it for Rafiq's check-up. I'm afraid I put it back in the Library. I'll fetch it for you tomorrow, all right?"

"No, don't worry about it,Okaa-san, I was finished with it. I just wanted to make sure it got back where it belonged." She turned to return to her room, then noticed Shamal's smile fading into an almost mournful look. "Okaa-san?"

Shamal twitched a little, as if surprised at being addressed, then asked, "Ah... Cid-chan... are you sure you want to move back into the dorms? This is your home now, as well, and..."

Cidela felt a little twinge of pain at Shamal's near-pleading tone, but they had been over this ground several times already in the preceding month, and she knew this was not a real attempt to change her mind, just a last protest. "I'm sure,Okaa-san. I'll just be down the path, in the dorms, but it wouldn't be fair to my classmates to stay here if they're all away from their families."

"They won't object to you staying here, either, Cid-chan, you know that."

"But I would," Cidela answered, moving back into the kitchen and hugging Shamal. "I won't be far away,Okaa-san, just down the path. It isn't that I don't like it here, I just feel like I should be down there during classes. I can help Noriko-chan keep an eye on the new girls, too."

Shamal sighed heavily and returned the hug. "I know, Cid-chan, I know, it's just... you've finally gotten comfortable here, and it feels like you're leaving again. I promise not to hover too much, but you'll forgive me if I worry a little?"

"A little," Cidela allowed. "Don't worry too much, though. This isn't last year. I know everyone, now, and I'm stronger, Rafiq is stronger, I'm sure Noriko and the others are as well. Even if the Circles try something again, we'll be prepared."

"I know, Cid-chan, but I worry anyway, and not just about the Circles. I've never really done this before, so I'm a little nervous about it all. Are you sure you want to live in the dorms? We could have all your things back..."

"Okaa-san!" Cidela pulled back, giving Shamal a mock-frown, "I said no. It wouldn't be fair to my friends, it's part of the learning experience, and all the other arguments I've used already. Besides," she switched to a smile, "it's our second year, and Laura said something about wild parties after lights out. I wouldn't want to miss those."

Cidela giggled at the mental image of herself at a 'wild party', but to her surprise, Shamal's semi-sad smile faded into a true frown. "_That girl_. I swear, she was trouble from the moment she was born. She's a bad influence, especially if she's talking about parties. I think maybe..."

"Leave my apprentice alone," Signum called from the living room. "She's just fine the way she is."

Shamal blinked, then grinned a little sheepishly. "All right, all right, I'll behave. Go finish packing, Cid-chan. Dinner will be in a couple hours, a little later than usual."

00000

Hughes looked up as the door to his office opened, and Sergeant Maunders stepped in. She cocked her head to one side, asking, "you wanted to see me, sir?"

He leaned back from the file on his desk, and waved at a chair, "Have a seat, Sergeant." She complied easily, and sat for a moment, waiting politely for him to gather his thoughts. "I understand new orders have come through for you."

She nodded, "Yes, sir. About time, too, if I may. I've been here four years, I should have been rotated out last year."

"I needed you here," he explained. "In fact, I still need you here, and I'm curious as to why my request to retain your services was declined."

She grinned at him slightly, "Well, sir, the workings of Personnel are greater arcane mysteries than you or I are equipped to fathom. I would be afraid to hazard a guess, but perhaps they set me to packing because... I've been here too long?"

He frowned at her, but could not put much force behind it. When she continued to just grin at him, he huffed once, and gave up. "Fine, but do you mind explaining why? You know how much I'm relying on you, for both the base and the Circles."

"Yes, sir, I do know," she nodded, and the grin faded, "but I really have been here too long, and I'll be more useful to you somewhere else. The military position is nothing, any sergeant can fill in for me just fine. It's with the Circles that you need the most help, and again, any other mage can do what I've been doing here. Better to have me someplace else keeping an eye on things, making sure the Revenants don't get too uppity, and keeping the other Moderns from going hog-wild. Admittedly, others could do that, but that just means all the reasons for leaving and staying are balanced, leaving only the Army's policy on rotating soldiers through different commands." She shrugged again, "the great benefit of the Circles and the Army, their hierarchical structures allow easy replacement of any individual."

Hughes nodded reluctantly. "You aren't that easily replaced, Maunders, and I really don't want to loose you. But if you're going, you're going. Do you know where you're new assignment is?"

"Well, I was hoping for a stint at Bragg as a drill sergeant, like I bribed this one fellow sergeant for, but instead I get to go to Japan and help the JSDF hold off those dastardly Chinese and North Koreans. Should be boring enough I might actually have the time to learn the language."

Hughes felt a stab of doubt and mistrust, "Japan?"

Maunders smirked at him, "Yup, Japan. Main island, too, playing nursemaid to some planning team outside Tokyo. And before you ask, no, I don't think the Circles are involved. In all honesty, I think it's just the colonel running the show. I was his first squad sergeant when he was a wet-behind-the-ears second lieutenant, and he was a smart puppy, for a second louie. Listened to his sergeant, did what his sergeant told him too... you know, I don't think I even had to wipe his... chin too much."

"You think he's just looking for a familiar face?"

She nodded, "Yeah probably. I checked up on him, and it's the closest thing the bookworm's come to a field position or independent command, and he was just promoted to lieutenant colonel last month. He's an admin type, and I bet he's nervous enough to use those political connections you officers delight in to get someone he trusts. And who's an officer going to trust more than the first sergeant they ever had?"

Hughes nodded, remembering the 'old man' who had run his first squad when he was first commissioned. Hughes had wished for that sort of reliable right hand man ever since, and thought he had one in Maunders. But, if it was not Circle manipulations, just regular bureaucracy... "All right, I'll let you go. But stay in touch, on both subjects. See if you can keep an eye on Hayate, since you're going to be there. Be careful of the locals, they've never liked any of us being in Japan, and may start something. Watch for any kind of turn-about, and stay away from Akira and Takashi..."

She held up a hand and quipped, "I'll even remember to look both ways before crossing the street, Daddy." When he frowned at her, she frowned right back, "Seriously, sir. I'm a big girl, I've been around the block a few times. I'll stay in touch, and I'll stay careful."

"In that case, good luck, Sergeant."

"Thank you, sir."

00000

Yussef straightened slowly from his prayer while the other worshipers filed out, settling back to sit on his heels again, but kept his eyes closed, his breathing steady, waiting. When he heard his brother rise as well, he opened his eyes and looked about, spotting the discrete guards placed about the room, his family's and his hosts', obvious in the crowd due to their stillness. Also obvious for similar reasons, standing in a small door at the rear of the mosque was a nervous looking man, not all that much older than Omar, watching the two of them.

"I think they're ready for us," Omar commented.

"Probably," Yussef agreed, "but the Pillars of Islam come before worldly concerns."

Omar just gave him a dubious look, then asked, "You ready for this? These men are not nearly as polite as those back home."

"The worst they can do is tell me no," Yussef argued, rocking back onto his toes before rising smoothly to his feet.

"They can declare you a heretic, brother-mine. Which would be a problem."

Yussef shrugged as they started walking to the door, "I've already been declared a heretic."

"Ancient conspiracy-nuts and desert-dwelling fanatics don't count. The leading imams of Mecca are a whole 'nother story."

Yussef could only agree with that, but at the same time, he was distinctly unconcerned. The learned men of Qatar had demonstrated that learning to him often enough to earn his and his family's respect, while he had little such personal knowledge of their counterparts here in the Holy City. He certainly understood the implications, especially the political implications for his family, but found he had very little emotional involvement in their decision. "The Circles are more dangerous to me than anyone Mecca's Imams could send after me. I admit to being worried about our family, but Father and I already talked it over. If the worst comes, it would be a simple matter to dissociate me from the family, publicly at least."

"That will not happen," Omar stated firmly, "ever."

Yussef chuckled at little, and shook his head. "And you're supposed to be the adult here. Besides, maybe I actually managed to convince them."

Another dubious look, then Omar grabbed his jaw, turning his head from side-to-side, performing a detailed inspection. "You didn't hit your head on something, did you? You seeing straight?" He held up two fingers, "How many fingers am I holding up? You seeing flashes? Hearing voices?"

Yussef jerked his head out of Omar's grip, shoving his brother back a little to prevent a re-capture, and muttered, "Other than the ones telling me to beat you into the ground? No."

The messenger chose that moment to interrupt, "Ah, Your Highnesses? The Imams wish to speak to you."

"Lead on," Omar ordered, and the small army of security personnel shuffled to follow. As they proceeded along a series of covered walkways, Yussef contemplated that force with more than a little amusement. While the strictures limiting their use of magic away from the controlled environment of the school were more relaxed than they had been in winter, especially in the event of another attack, he had still managed to refine his abilities somewhat over the summer. _I wonder if any of these guards realize that, if someone were stupid enough to attack, all they would be doing is watching from behind my barriers?_

The walk was not all that long, however, and they were ushered into a spacious room, cooled by a multitude of wide windows covered by softly billowing curtains and slowly turning ceiling fans. Despite that, the gathering of old men seated on low chairs facing them were sweating in the August heat, and Yussef silently thanked Niranjana for the minor spell that held the heat from him. Most of his attention focused on the gathered elders, considering their demeanor and silent attitudes. Most wore flat non-expressions, revealing nothing. A few glared outright, and one looked as though he wanted to spit, but to Yussef's surprise, almost as many looked thoughtful or even respectful.

The man in the center, the eldest present, was among that last group, almost ignoring Omar as the polite formalities were observed to study Yussef. Finally, some twenty minutes after they were shown in, he came to the point. "You have been very candid with us, Princes of Qatar. Your father's offer is, in its intent, in keeping with the teachings of Islam, for safeguarding the Holy City is the duty of all Muslims. But, after much deliberation, we must respectfully decline. The... technology upon which it is based is, to our understanding, untried, by life or by Allah. While the safety of Mecca is important, we must also consider that of the pilgrims, who journey here on Hajj. They are peaceful, non-violent, and we cannot, in good conscience, risk their safety with untried... technology. We commend you for the spirit in which the offer was made, but must decline."

Yussef could feel his brother's anger building, and was more than a little insulted himself. The offer had been incredibly generous, by any standard, including giving the men in this room final veto of every single ward, shield, and alarm. To be rejected so quickly, so simply and on such shaky grounds was aggravating beyond all belief. But the last year had put the finishing touches on controlling his temper, as had several long conversations with his father on various subjects. So instead of exploding, as Omar was preparing to do, he took his brother's hand and whispered, "Omar, not now."

Omar whipped his head around to glare, so Yussef, moved forward slightly, and replied to the old Imam, "Thank you for your time, learned elders, and for your prompt reply. We shall convey your regards to our father, but ask that you remember the offer. It will remain open, should you ever come to share our trust in the new technology's safety." It was only then that he gave in to the anger, rose from the chair he had occupied, and strode out of the room without glancing back, ignoring the ripple of insulted murmurs.

The handler who brought them from the mosque looked like he was about to keel over in shock, but Yussef just brushed past him, as did Omar a step behind. They made their own way back out in silence, Omar still fuming. Once they were on the street, however, he exploded.

"I can't believe them! The hide-bound ignorant old _women_! 'Learned men' my ass!"

"Omar, calm down," Yussef counseled, "I'm the one who's supposed to loose control. You're the elder brother, supposed to know better."

"Jump off a cliff, Yussef," Omar growled, "I can't believe you just walked out of there!"  
"Strategy, at Father's suggestion. Remember what he said? 'If it looks like they almost agreed, just go. Don't plead or argue, just accept it and come home. Better a partial victory that can be built on.' It's like dealing with Laura. Giving her a little room makes it easier to talk her into behaving when it's important. Same thing here – by leaving now, we can always come back, and it demonstrates to those 'old men' that we're not willful spoiled children, so when we do come back, they'll listen instead of dismissing us."

"It still pisses me off," Omar growled. "What happens if a Circle mage decides to go crazy here? What if some western mage decides to score some points for his religion by damaging Mecca? How can they possibly deal with anything like that?"

"Probably with the Circle mages among them," Yussef shrugged, "it isn't Terran mages I'm worried about, to be honest, it's off-worlders looking for artifacts..." He trailed off when he realized Omar was no longer walking beside him. Looking back, his brother was staring at him in utter shock. "What?"

"There's a mage among the Imams?"

"Yeah, felt like a couple. Shields, just like the ones the Circle mages were using last year. Don't tell me you're surprised?"

"But... but... it's magic!"

"Not to them it isn't," Yussef countered, "and not really to me, either. It's just knowledge, special learning, the same as I argued when we first presented the idea."

He would have explained more, but a chime in his ear threw him off, followed by a phrase in Japanese. _'Yussef, where are you?'_

He tried to reach back mentally, but as usual it just did not click. So giving a slight sigh, he shaped the communications spell, "I'm in Mecca, Signum-sensei, on family business. My brother and I were just going to return to the hotel and catch a flight home."

_'That would explain why your mother has no idea where you are. I'm at your palace, you were supposed to be here to return to the Academy today. How long until you are back here?'_

"Today?!" Yussef could not help looking at his watch, staring at the date. August thirtieth, just as it had been when he got up. "But... I thought tomorrow was new term!"

_'It is. You agreed to help show the new kids around, and __they__ show up tomorrow. We need to have you settled in today, so that you're ready.'_

Yussef thought furiously for a minute, and almost swore as he realized she was right, and he had completely forgotten that fact. "I'm sorry, sensei, I got the dates confused. Umm... a little more than an hour in the air, half hour to the airport, another half hour from airport to the palace, twenty minutes here to the hotel, maybe half an hour there... I think I can be there in three hours, sensei."

_'Good enough, I'll be back then, after picking up Juliet. Remind Zafira to work on your time-keeping skills this semester.'_

"Hai, sensei."

He terminated the spell as the sense of Signum's presence faded, only to find Omar smirking at him. "You just got yelled at by a skirt, didn't you, bro?"

"Bite me," Yussef shot back. "Let's go, before she decides to come looking for me, and you make a fool of yourself hitting on her."

Omar frowned, "I wouldn't hit on your teacher. Ick, old women may be your thing, but no thanks, man."

Yussefchuckled, "Signum's a couple centuries old, at least, though she's never said how old. You know how women are about admitting their ages. But I'll tell you this, imagine Heather in about five years with purple hair and more willpower. You'd be drooling, brother – drooling, incoherent, and making an absolute fool of yourself."

Four hours later, he was almost proven right. Omar managed not to make a complete fool of himself, or be caught drooling, when Signum met their plane at the airport, with their parents. He was even man enough to admit, in later conversations, that Yussef had been mostly right.

00000

"Tai-yu-san?" The woman who had been Journeywoman Sandoval looked up from her clasped hands, to find a slightly younger man standing in the door of the room. Before she could speak, he added, "It's time. Follow me."

She stood slowly, "Thank you, Admiral Hallaoun." Not for telling her when it was time, but for his honesty. He had never once, since she was captured by Admiral Testarossa, been anything other than brutally honest with her. That was, she was fairly certain, one of the major reasons why she had made it this far, and why she was not, like the rest of those involved in Operation Nimrod, sentenced to decades in an alien prison.

"Don't thank me yet," he told her, turning to head down the gleaming white hallway, "the Court has made its decision, but no one but its members know what that is, yet."

Tai-yu nodded, following him down the hall silently. She was almost accustomed to the armed enforcer following behind them. They progressed through the Bureau's headquarters, but not very far. She had a glimpse through clear panels of a long tree-filled atrium, but they turned away from it, in favor of more corridors.

The finally stopped outside one door, and Admiral Hallaoun paused, turning to face her for a moment. "I'm not supposed to escort you in, only the bailiff here is, but I'll be in the audience. You've done too much to help us clean up this mess, and prevent a recurrence, so you have nothing to worry about. Just relax, stay calm, and whatever happens, we'll see you soon."

She nodded her understanding, and he turned and strode off down the hall. She took advantage of the pause to steel herself, settle a neutral mask firmly in place. A minute later, the bailiff triggered the automatic door, and ushered her in. She found an audience already gathered, and Admiral Hallaoun entering from the rear door. She strode over to the defendant's station without hesitating, turning once she was there to stand at parade rest. She was not and had not been military, but in this military setting, it was natural, and had garnered her a certain respect.

She had to wait a few more minutes, then the three officers of the Court of Inquiry entered, taking their seats behind the high bench at the front of the room. The formalities proceeded with surprising efficiency, as the charges against her were read once more, and very shortly she was called forward to stand at the center of the chamber.

"Tai-yu Sandoval," the Admiral in charge declared, frowning down at her, "Circle Journeywoman, former aide to one Li Quan, you stand before this court accused of the aforementioned crimes. In light of your own statements, verbal and written, as well as evidence presented to this Court, you are hereby found guilty on all counts."

She could not help flinching, but managed to limit the expression to her face. According to what both Admiral Hallaoun and her appointed advocate had told her, the charges against her were more serious than any save those against Doctor Al Huri and those that would have been brought against Li himself, because she had been Li's aide and primary assistant for all of it. Combined, they carried a minimum sentence of over thirty years, and a maximum of life.

The Admiral continued despite her sudden fear, "In light of the administrative nature of your roll in the crimes under consideration, and primarily in light of your cooperation with Bureau personnel in response to those crimes, this court has been requested to grant you leniency. Therefore, you are hereby sentenced to ten years hard labor under guard. In the interests of diplomatic cooperation, and in light of where your crimes took place and against whom they were directed, you are hereby remanded to the custody of Yagami Hayate for the duration of your sentence. This court is adjourned. Bailiff, execute sentence."

For a few seconds, the sheer shock of the last part of her sentence held her immobile. Despite her assistance to the Bureau, she had still never met the woman, and knew little about her other than that Admiral Hallaoun held her in great respect. The fear of spending decades off Earth rapidly faded, to be replaced by near-terror at the prospect of being handed over to the woman who she had helped attack barely six months before.

"Ma'am," the bailiff interrupted her incipient panic, lightly resting a hand on her shoulder to turn her around.

Letting the man turn her around, she found herself face to face with a nondescript young woman. She was about Tai-yu's own height, wearing a plain white dress. Everything about her was plain, in fact – simple brown hair cut short, simple features, a slight smile. It was her eyes that caught Tai-yu's attention, however. They were deep, dark blue, and held a surprisingly serene strength.

"Hello, Tai-yu," the young woman said, "I am Yagami Hayate. I'm sorry we did not meet sooner, or under better circumstances, but I have been unable to make the time to journey back to Headquarters recently, for a variety of reasons."

"Ah... it's all right, Yagami-san," Tai-yu stammered, surprised again, this time by how little hostility she felt from her new jailer.

"We'll take her from here, bailiff," Admiral Hallaoun said, standing at Hayate's shoulder.

"Yes, sir," the man responded, then gave her a squeeze on the shoulder and a friendly smile before turning to leave.

"Relax," Hayate ordered, "and please, call me Hayate. I don't care for formality generally."

"I... I'll try to remember that, ma'am."

Hayate frowned at her slightly, then smiled again and shook her head. "At least it's a step in the right direction. Come, we'll collect your personal effects then head for the teleport bay."

They walked in silence for a time, long enough to complete her paperwork and collect what few personal effects had been brought from Earth when she was captured, then once more ventured into the corridors to head for the nearest teleport bay. That was when Hayate broke the silence, "I'm sure you must have some questions, Sandoval-san."

"Ah, yes, ma'am," she managed, "I... why did you accept the Court's sentence?"

"I didn't accept it," Hayate said, giving her another smile, "I requested it. You have shown a remarkable flexibility of outlook since you were captured, but an equal adherence to certain core values I share, primarily honesty. Also, given how much assistance you have provided the Bureau, you would not be safe amongst the other prisoners taken from Operation Nimrod. Finally, I have a use for you... several uses, actually."

Tai-yu had to think that explanation over for a few minutes, and her two escorts let her have that time in silence. On the one hand, the explanation was the sort of emotionless logic she had always striven for, the ability to make decisions based solely on facts and objectives, rather than on emotion or unreliable 'feelings'. On the other hand, the explanation was almost painfully naive and trusting, and completely lacking in the sort of angry vindictiveness that should have, by rights, been directed at her.

_'You don't need to worry about this,' _Admiral Hallaoun commented, and Tai-yu actually stumbled as she realized he had not _spoken_ a word. _'Do you remember Nanoha? Admiral Takamichi?'_

Tai-yu nodded with a fleeting smile. The energetic and eternally optimistic young woman had been one of the first to question her, and the most confident of those who offered her clemency. Nanoha had not even offered, simply assumed that clemency was an accomplished fact. She had also seemed a little to naive and trusting, until Admiral Hallaoun had explained her track-record one afternoon.

_'Nanoha is one of Hayate's oldest and closest friends_, he continued at her nod. _'Only the Wolkenritter and Suzuka are older friends, or closer, but Nanoha became her friend during, and saw her through, one of the most traumatic experiences of her life. Hayate has based many of her own attitudes, consciously or not, on Nanoha's. Including the idea of forgiveness. Hayate is not quite as forgiving as Nanoha, she'll only give you so many chances, but she will give you those chances. She also does not hold a grudge. Her familiars, the Lieze twins? They originally tried to manipulate her into destroying herself, yet when the twins' creator died, she took up their service without a second thought, and even before then she never held their actions against them. Relax, don't betray her, and things will be fine.'_

_'If you say so,_' she thought, hoping he would pick it up. Aloud, she asked, "what would you have me do, ma'am?"

"I need more teachers," Hayate said immediately, "and you will provide something no one else I've considered can – an alternate viewpoint. Too many of my students from last year remember the Circles only as the enemy that attacked them. In part, I want you to put a human face on the Circles, especially since some of the new students I have invited this year are the children of Circle mages. Also, your magic is subtly different from that we're teaching the children, the differences will prove a good challenge for the returning students, which will also teach them how to deal with those Circle mages still actively hostile to me, these so-called 'Revenants'. Essentially, Sandoval-san, I want you to teach. Though I must admit to having a question of my own."

The idea of teaching had never occurred to her. In the Circles, she was nowhere near strong enough, only a Master and above could teach, and she was honest enough to admit she would never reach that level. She was not even sure if she _wanted _to teach, children never having been high on her list of interests. But this was supposed to be a punishment, however light it now seemed, so she supposed she would have to get used to it. "What question was that, ma'am?"  
"Your first name is Chinese, yet your last name is... Spanish, I believe?"

Tai-yu smiled at that, feeling a bit of relieved amusement. "I'm from Hong Kong, ma'am. My great grandfather was Spanish, during the British occupation, but married a Chinese woman, and his branch of the family has been in the city ever since."

"Well, Tai-yu Sandoval, from Hong Kong," Hayate said as they entered a large chamber that resonated with power, "welcome to the Yagami Academy. I look forward to seeing what you can do." Then the chamber vanished in a flash of white.

00000

"Laura, where are you?"

"On my way home, Dad," she said, almost inaudible over a strange roaring sound.

Johnathan pulled the cell-phone away from his ear for a moment to frown at it, then replaced it and asked, "What's that noise?"

"Sorry, Dad," Laura shouted back, "I'm airborne. Like I said, on my way home. I should be there in about twenty minutes."

"One of your teachers is here, Vita."

"Oh," there was a disappointed tone to her voice, that disappeared as she continued, "tell her I'm sorry, please, and that I'll be there as soon as I can?"

"She already knows that," Johnathan said, "she just wanted an ETA, and said she couldn't reach you magically."

"Huh? Why not? Oh, wait... yeah I still had some shields up. Sorry."  
"About time," Vita muttered, and Johnathan glanced over to find her frowning fiercely at nothing.

A moment later, Laura shouted, "Oh, come on, Vita-sensei! I'm out here at sensei's orders! She asked me to check up on the blast in Georgia, so that's what I did!" Vita snorted, but again remained silent, but she was quite apparently in contact with Laura, "Gah! I told you! Sensei asked me to! This morning! I didn't even land! I flew around in circles, scanned the blast site, and got out of there! Come on, Vita-sensei, don't blame me for this!"

Johnathan almost said something, since he had spoken to Signum as well, but then noticed that Vita was showing a slowly widening grin, and shook his head. "Laura?" She continued to rant, so he repeated, "Laura!"

She paused a second, then, "Yeah, Dad?"

"Just get home as quick as you can, Laura," he told her, "and plan to stay through lunch. Your bags may be packed, but if you don't say goodbye to your mother, she's liable to come after you with violence on her mind."

"What, do I look that stupid? Of course I'm going to say goodbye to everyone."

"I won't answer that question," he allowed with a grin of his own, "I'll see you when you get home." He hung up the phone, and gave Vita a questioning look.

She shrugged, still grinning, "I'm good. I'll wait here until she's ready to go, if you don't mind. It's good to see she's arguing again, though."

"Waiting here's fine," he allowed, "want anything to drink? She's had some ups and downs, had us worried for a few days after last term ended, but when all her old friends showed up for her birthday she finally stopped moping completely. She's been more like her old self ever since. Still a bit more serious, but it's hard to tell with her."

"Good, she's one of the only ones that'll argue with me, and it doesn't look like the new kids'll be any better," Vita muttered, following him into the kitchen.

"Didn't think kids were supposed to argue with their teachers," Johnathan commented, though he understood her attitude.

"Tche, shows spine. How're they supposed to learn how to stand up to trouble if they won't do it to us?"

"Well, Laura's got that in spades, these days," Johnathan commented, handing her a soda can. "turning out a might tougher than I expected."

"Yeah, she's that all right. Still got a lot to learn, but she's doing us proud," Vita agreed, smirking now instead of grinning.

Johnathan hesitated a moment, then decided that, politeness or not, he had to ask, "are you anticipating any sort of trouble this year? I've seen too much in the news this summer about the Circles' internal fighting to be entirely comfortable."

Vita's smirk faded, and she shrugged, "Do we expect anything specific? No. There's been no attempts on the school or the students since February. But the Revenants are starting to get their act together, starting to get organized and coherent again. That's the bad news. The good news is, so are the Moderns, and we've got a head-start over both factions The Moderns are afraid of Hayate enough that they'll stop any Revenant operations they find out about, and neither side really has any capacity to operate in Japan, especially not these days. _We_ know a lot more of what's going on now than we did last year, as well. Hayate and Shamal have put together a fairly accurate list of active mages, even Revenants and the weirdos outside the Circles, and we keep a very close eye on any of them that look like they're getting close to Japan. So, we're not expecting anything, and we're better prepared for whatever does happen."

"Which is roughly what Miss Hayate told me last year," he commented sourly.

"Yup. It was true then, and it's true now. Oh, admittedly, the Circles surprised us last year, but they won't do that again. We know about them, now. There's more likely to be trouble in Egypt, where the Bureau's studying how the Circles' clean-up crews work. They're moving slow, and they're in the open, so the whole place is a little vulnerable. But nothing at the school." Vita paused, then frowned at him curiously, "How do you feel about what she was doing this morning? Signum wants Laura to help with keeping an eye on things, and I know she asked you about it, but are you and your wife okay with it?"

Johnathan shook his head a little, "Not completely. But we're not completely okay with Brian's choice of career either. As I told Marie, it's our fault, since we raised them to be responsible and aggressive. We both would prefer it if Laura wasn't so determined to fit herself into Signum's mold, but at the same time, she's living up to the family traditions. So, not okay with it, but we can live with it. Better that than her being some spoiled little brat. We've discussed it with Signum, especially when and where we won't permit her to be involved."

"You're proud of her, aren't you?"

"Yup," Johnathan smiled back at her, "girl's tough, smart, honest, and just plain good. We just wish she'd be a little more serious and cautious once in a while."

00000

The clack of wood on wood resonated through the room, accompanied by heavy breathing and stomping feet on the padded floor. The two figures, one small and lithe, the other only slightly larger, twisted and slid over the floor, exchanging a rapid flurry of blows, counters, and deceitful gestures with the pair of fans in each hand. This continued for a few minutes, until the larger figure called, "Time." The two of them froze, then both stepped back and bowed formally to one another.

"Not bad, Hime-sama," the taller figure said, reaching up to remove his mask, "you still favor your right side too much, but you are improving. Definitely better than when we began in June."

Noriko bowed again, "Thank you, Takahata-sensei, you have taught me well."

Someone coughed outside, and a moment later one of the dojo's shoji panels slid to the side, to reveal Noriko's father, and Hayate-sensei. The two of them moved to stand at the edge of the mats, and her father spoke, "I'm sorry to interrupt, Takahata-san, Noriko, but I thought you might like to greet your teacher."

"It is of no moment, Your Highness," Takahata replied, bowing to the prince, "we were just finishing anyhow."

"Good afternoon, Hayate-sensei," Noriko added.

"You say she favor's her right, Takahata-san," Hayate asked, "How badly?"

Takahata looked at her a little curiously, but explained, "only somewhat. I know of her injury, of course, but I think that is not the cause. She has developed a bit of ambidexterity due to her injury, but still attempts to reserve her right hand and side for her attacks, rather than using both freely. The form of tessenjutsu I have been teaching her relies on balance between the hands more than strength. Ambidexterity to fool an opponent into looking in the wrong place for an attack. The princess has a habit of using her left hand for distraction and defense, while her attacks are almost all from her right hand. A matter of training and experience only, Lady Yagami."

"Thank you, Takahata-sensei," Hayate said, then turned to Noriko. "Speaking of your injury...?"

Noriko wanted to sigh, tired of constantly being asked about that, "I am fine, Hayate-sensei. My therapy course finished last month, and Shamal-sensei cleared me the day before yesterday." She held up her right hand and wiggled the fingers energetically, "See? Full range of motion, full control. I'm back to normal, though I am still doing exercises with both hands, they've helped my dexterity."

"Good to hear," Hayate admitted, with a knowing smile. She had been involved in much of Noriko's therapy, and appraised of what she was not involved in, but it was still nice to have direct confirmation.

Noriko smiled at that in shared memory, then shifted to a frown, mentally checking the time, "I'm sorry I'm not ready yet, Hayate-sensei, but I thought you weren't going to come for me for another few hours..."

"I wasn't, and I'm not," Hayate told her, "but I do need to speak to your father about a few matters, and it would have been rude not to say hello."

"Our session is concluded for the day, anyhow," Takahata reminded Noriko, "though I understand you will be returning for our weekly sessions?"

"Hai, sensei," Noriko told him, "Signum-sensei has agreed to bring me back here, or to your dojo, whichever you would prefer."

"Here will be fine," he told her, "easier to secure, I imagine. In which case, shall we conclude, Hime-sama?"

"I'll pick you up at the scheduled time, Noriko," Hayate told her, then bowed again to Takahata-sensei, before withdrawing with Noriko's father.

"A most impressive young woman," Takahata commented, "she knows herself remarkably well."

'Finishing up' mostly consisted of progressing through a series of progressively softer katas, cooling down from the exertion of the sparring. While they progressed through those, side by side, Takahata-sensei reviewed her progress since their prior lesson in more detail, including instructions on where to focus her practice before their next lesson. She was, in all honesty, surprised at how well she had done, both at tessenjutsu and her recovery. It helped that Shamal and Takahata had, between them, devised a therapy program that incorporated his lessons, and that a lot of what she was doing was relearning, rather than learning new. It was still impressive enough to satisfy even her demanding standards to, in sixth months, have recovered from her injury, learned the foundation of a new style of martial arts, and continued refining her ability with magic. It was almost enough to satisfy her mother, even.

Once she had bid farewell to her sensei, she headed for her room, then for a quick shower. Most of what she was planning to bring back to school was already packed, but she had left out a change of clothes for this eventuality, and once she was clean again, packed away the worn gi and shower supplies. Rather than interrupt her father and teacher, she then spent the next hour or so alternately fidgeting over nothing, and rechecking everywhere in case she had forgotten something.

Finally, Hayate and her father came out of their meeting, and Noriko went to meet them. Saying good bye to her family took longer than she had expected, and despite Hayate's early arrival, they were still very nearly late. Fortunately, the 'trip to school' was merely a matter of teleporting to the overlook. Once there, bags in hand, Noriko breathed a soft sigh of relief.

Hayate chuckled a little, and asked, "Glad to be back?"

"Hai, sensei," Noriko said with a smile, "I was worried Mother would not let me come back, despite Father's assurances to you. She's been acting especially clingy the last week or so. It's rather stressful."

"I can imagine," Hayate replied, a little wistfully, reaching down to heft one of Noriko's bags. "But you're here now, for a second, less dangerous, year."

"Oh, I hope not," Noriko countered, smile shifting to an outright grin "After all, I hope to learn Deva magic this year, Sensei, and you keep saying that's incredibly dangerous."

Hayate shook her head, but she was smiling as well. "You learned that from Laura, didn't you? No, there will be no Deva magic for any of you this year, either. Maybe when you're thirty."

Staring down the path, Noriko frowned, "Drat. Well, in all seriousness, there shouldn't be any trouble this year, and we're better equipped to handle it. To be honest, I'm mostly worried about these new students."

"I thought you would welcome the challenge."

"Oh, that, yes. But... I'm worried about how well they'll fit in here. We established some solid relationships and good working ability last year, but with new personalities, who will now have their own issues... Getting them used to Laura, will take some careful work, and I'm honestly worried how they will take Yussef and I. Even worse that two of them are Circle children."

Hayate blinked at her in surprise, "How did you hear about that?!"

Noriko shrugged, "Vita-sensei babbles when she's annoyed. I don't have a problem with it, but some of the others might, and they could very well have problems with us."

Hayate shook her head, "I don't think they will, at least not because of their origin. They are twins and, from what I gather, mutually self-involved."

"Let me guess," Noriko groaned, "made up their own language, telepathic with each other, cut one the other bleeds..."

"No, they're not that bad. Though, I understand they did both learn Latin so they could have private conversations. They just... are not very well socialized, much like Cid-chan was."

"How is she, by the way? Her e-mails – the few she's sent – seemed happy enough."

"She's doing fine," Hayate smiled again, amused as she remembered Shamal's 'argument' with Cidela. "She and Shamal have had their first mother/daughter fight, though. Shamal did not want her to move back into the dorms."

"And Cid-chan won, right?"

Hayate nodded, "Of course. They were frighteningly nice about it, though. No screaming, no shouting, no shouted declarations of 'because I'm your mother' or 'you don't really love me', just polite, reasoned and loving. I really thought such fights were supposed to be more melodramatic. I'm glad they weren't that bad, mind you, but it is somewhat amusing."

Noriko could well imagine what a 'mother/daughter fight' between the ever-quiet Cid-chan and the ever-placid Shamal would be like. _Probably involved a lot of hugs, quietly emotional appeals and painfully logical arguments,_ she thought. A high-pitched ululating war-cry interrupted her thoughts, and she looked up to see a brilliant white flash go by, well above the trees, Laura making her return known to all and sundry. Laughing up at the sight, Noriko muttered, "Kami-sama, it's good to be back."

00000

_"While the official calendar marks Founding Day, Year One as the legal beginning of the Empire, as that was the day the Japanese and American governments formally surrendered their sovereignty to the Emperor, most historians actually place the Empire's beginning somewhat earlier, in the second year of Yagami Hayate's now infamous Academy of Magic. That year was, after all, the first time all the major figures on the rebel side of the Terran Mage-War gathered together in one place, at the Academy. The Black Dragon and his Shadow, the Goddess of Light, the original Wolkenritter, the Quantum Knight, the Desert Knight and his Herald and Myrmidons, the Hengeyokai Queen, the Morrígan, the Reborn, Wrack and Ruin, Mad Maudlin, the Black Dogs... all of the founding mages, finally coming together in common cause._

_"Arguments are often made, however, that the Empire truly began the year before, as the events surrounding the Academy in that year, according to those who espouse this theory, resulted inexorably in the events of the second year and following, which brought about the undermining and collapse of traditional Terran nations, and thus paved the way for the Empire's founding. These arguments are compelling, but only in the sense that historical causality is an endless waltz of ever-changing partners. Taken to its logical conclusion, this argument would state that the founding of the Empire is a direct and inevitable result of the original formation of the Circles to defeat the Lords of Light, all of which occurred prior to the rise of recorded civilization, or even further, to the foundation of the Lords of Light and the colonization of the galaxy. No, the events of the first year did not cause the Empire's foundation, though they did play a large part in setting the stage for those events that __did__ cause it to form. It was the second year, especially those horrible days culminating in the awakening of the Goddess, that lead to the Empire's founding. Had those events not occurred, had they resolved in a different manner, the Empire as we know it would not exist, and I shudder to think what that world would be like."_

– the Dark Witch, personal historian to the First Emperor, as quoted in a live-broadcast interview on Founding Day, Year Thirty.

00000

Author's Note 01: A lot of you asked for a sequel to Academy Blues, so here's the first part of that sequel. According to my current plan, it's going to be longer than Academy Blues, and somewhat darker, but not depressing/angsty dark... just darker, and a little more violent (though I swear it will not be gratuitous!). I have much more solid information on each of the characters this time (families already determined, interests & goals, devices, etc), though I do not have a full-blown outline as I was trying for. Instead, I've got a general flow w/ target points, and several ideas for side-plots and supporting lines that should mesh together. I've got the first four chapters written, I'll post them at regular intervals, but after that I'm afraid I'll be back to my old whenever-it's-done schedule. Apologies to my fellow Type-As, but I've found that 'forcing' myself to write makes it worse.

Author's Note 02: The lyrics sung by Merudach are to Ghost Love Score, by Nightwish, from the album Once. Writing the lyrics out does not do them justice, but it's the song that most fit the scene in my mind.


	2. 01 New Students

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

"Here come the first of them," Yussef said.

"Yup," Marcel agreed, standing just behind his right shoulder, "going to be an interesting day."

A general chorus of agreement rumbled through the other boys, gathered around Yussef on the roof of the Boy's Wing. They had just seen the first lavender flash of an in-coming teleport up at the overlook, Signum returning with the first of their new classmates.

Still staring up there, Yussef asked, "Everything ready on our end?"

"The rooms are prepared, same for the Girl's Wing," Marcel answered him. "The demonstrations are ready, the welcoming dinner's cooking now – Cid-chan told me she would be staying in the kitchen helping the Kobayashi's – and Noriko says the girls are ready. Noah and Ichigo are on watch, Mariachi will be in the Library, and Toushiro will be in the main workroom, while Luke, you and I will be here in the dorm. Rotations every hour on the hour, dorm to library to workrooms to watch to dorm."

Yussef nodded, smiling slightly, "Good. Here's hoping for a smooth day, then." He turned back, and quirked and eyebrow at the others, "Well, lads? Why aren't you moving?"

Marcel stepped back a pace, and cleared his throat, "Ah, Yussef? I talked with the guys a lot over break, and we decided. I know you hate the name and the idea, but we can't help what you made us." His hand came out of his pocket, and for a moment, hands concealing the details, he fiddled with the collar of his uniform shirt. When he dropped them again, there was a brass pin there, an ancient Greek hoplite in full armor, standing at attention, spear vertical at his right shoulder, massive circular shield held along his left side. Holding out his hand, Marcel revealed a second pin, this one sporting a crested helmet and a twin-bladed sword on the shield. Grinning at Yussef's sour expression, Marcel continued, "We're your Myrmidons, and you're going to have to accept that."

"You idiots are serious about this, aren't you? I told you last year, one rescue op does not special forces make."

"We're not saying it does, man," Luke countered, tugging his own collar back into place after fixing his own pin in place. All six of the other boys now had matching pins on their collars. "Just that, of everything we learned last year, we learned to watch each others backs, and you were the one who taught us the most about how to do that. Hayate-sensei and the others taught us the basics, but you're the one that made us put it all together."

"You can say no, of course," Noah said, "everyone has the opportunity to relinquish responsibility, but we're still the Myrmidons, and we'll still look to you. Just accept the inevitable... Achilles."

Yussef actually glared at that, but he snatched the proffered pin out of Marcel's hand. "I am _not_ Achilles," he growled, fixing the pin in place, "Achilles let himself get killed in the moment of his own victory, and I have no intention of doing that." He frowned at them as a ought occurred to him, "Any of you – _any _of you – so much as hint that this somehow makes you special or puts you above the rest of the class, even above the new kids, I will run _all_ of you so ragged and pound you all so bloody you'll be praying for Signum-sensei's and Laura's undivided attentions. Do I make myself clear?"

"Understood," Marcel told him seriously, but the rest were still grinning at him as they nodded.

"It's even legal for the school uniform," Ichigo told him, "Marcel arranged it with Signum-sensei. We have to establish what criteria it takes to earn a pin and have her approve them, but we're allowed to wear them."

Yussef shook his head again, regretting not crushing the idea when Marcel first mentioned it to him shortly after Laura's return the year before. Back then it had just been an amusing topic for debate, something to talk about when the ever-present topic of magic grew over-used. _I should have cut him, __all__ of them, off at the knees then,_ Yussef thought to himself, _now I'm stuck with this idiocy. Allah be merciful, 'Myrmidons'. The guys are good, but they're not soldiers yet, and sure as sunrise they aren't any sort of 'bonded companions'._ "Laura's going to pitch a fit."

"Nah, Yu-chan, I'm just gonna laugh at you some more," Laura called out from courtyard. "Of course, I do that anyhow, so you probably won't notice, ne? What am I going to be laughing at you about this time, rich boy?"

Shaking his head, wondering how she had overheard, Yussef waved to the others, "Get going, guys. I'll decide how to pay you back for silliness this later." He strode to the edge of the roof and leaped, drawing just enough power through Zulfiqar to land gently next to Laura. "What you're going to be laughing about is what those yahoos came up with."

She snaked one hand up lightning quick, grabbing his collar and shifting the pin around for a better look. Then she glanced behind him, as Marcel and Luke landed, and shook her head. "Nah, I'm not going to laugh at any of your for that. You should probably have held out for a better inspiration, though, Yu-chan. Achilles bought it, hardcore."

"A point I'm well aware of. Shouldn't you be getting off to wherever you're supposed to be?"

Laura shrugged, and floated a few centimeters into the air. "Was just headed there, actually, 'till I saw you loonies up on the roof. First up's Matsuo Kaemon, local boy."

"He's not local, he's from Osaka," Marcel corrected her, "thirteen, bit of a samurai nut. Kendoist. Signum's already marked him out for testing." Marcel smirked at her, "looks like you're going to have some competition for her attention this year."

"Tche, new boy'll need it," she grinned back, "if he thinks he's going to give me a run for my money. Catch you guys at lunch!" Laura waved once, as she turned and zipped off towards the library.

Yussef watched her go for a moment, then turned and headed for the entrance, chuckling slightly. "I pity Kaemon," he said. "You realize, Marcel, that you just guaranteed he's going to be her number one target all year?"

"The trials she puts him through will build character," Marcel replied mendaciously.

They all laughed at that, waving off Aria's and Lotte's questioning looks as they headed for the Boys' Wings' common area. They would first meet Kaemon and his parents there.

00000

While last year's mass-introduction of all the students at once had worked well, Hayate had decided early in planning for her school's second year that the new students would be brought in one at a time, their arrivals staggered, to give each of them time to acclimate, and to get to know their new fellows. This way she could be certain that, as they arrived, each of the students and their families were properly greeted and shown about the campus in a workable fashion.

Primarily, the spacing also allowed her to focus her more limited resources. Chrono, Nanoha, Fate and Arf were not available this time, so it was just her and her knights doing the pickups. By staggering the new students' arrivals, she could send two Knights for each of them, and still retain two to help her watch over the campus. The assistance of her returning students, and the continuing intermittent violence of the Circles' civil-war, almost convinced her to send three Knights, but she decided to limit the pick-ups to two Knights, and be ready to respond if they ran into trouble.

The new students themselves were a cause for some concern. None of them quite matched the native strength of her first students, though they were still strong, and none of them could match the returning class' experience in both magic and battle, which gave her some concerns about keeping them from feeling overwhelmed. The new students certainly would not be able to match the camaraderie of her returning students, which had more potential to cause friction between the two classes. She was not terribly worried, given what a good bunch her first students were, but it was something she was already paying attention to. Despite their smaller number, the new kids also represented just as wide an array of culture and status. Again, given her returning students' ability to get along she was not overly worried, just concerned.

Most of what worried her about the new students was the two students she had almost not invited. They had appeared on Shamal's original scan, but been just a bit young for Hayate to invite them. Now, thanks to Akira, she knew the Marterosian twins were the daughters of two Circle mages, already had a grounding in magic none of their fellows had, and were, thanks to the events of the prior winter, part of a broken home. So, when Signum and Zafira brought the two girls and their father to the overlook, unlike the other new students, Hayate was there to meet them.

Their father, Shiraz Marterosian, was of middling height, wide shouldered and solidly built beneath his business suit, square face serious and demonstrably worried as he rested a hand on each girl's shoulder. The girls themselves obviously took after their mother, with thin builds, sharp faces, long wispy blond hair and dark blue eyes. They were also patently as worried as their father despite their blank faces, holding hands tightly and staring fixedly at Hayate.

"Good morning, Mister Marterosian," Hayate told them as the teleport faded, bowing politely before stepping forward. "Welcome to Japan."

He freed one hand long enough to shake her hand, "Thank you, Miss Yagami. And thank you again, for the offer."

She smiled a little sadly, "I am truly sorry for the troubles..."

He shook his head slowly, "Nothing you could do about it, Miss. Jessica and I had our problems before, Hughes' treaty just brought them all out."

Hayate could only accept that, still uncomfortable with her roll in his domestic issues. She put it aside, and leaned down to give the girls a friendly smile, "Hello Saeryn, Rhys. It's nice to finally meet the two of you."

They stared at her blankly for a moment, then replied in perfect unison, "Hello, Miss Yagami." The perfect synchronization was strange but expected. It was the utterly flat emotionless tone that sent a shiver down her spine.

Shiraz cleared his throat, "Shall we move along? I'm somewhat nervous standing out here in the open."

"Certainly," Hayate agreed, finally breaking her stare with the twins, "though I do assure you, our wards now extend to cover the entire valley and all three mountains, anywhere that might have line of sight to the campus. Come, the path is this way."

The girls moved to stay just behind their father as they walked, Signum and Zafira bringing up the rear a comfortable distance behind them, still on watch. Hayate let Reinforce and the Sword monitor her surroundings, and focused instead on her companion. "Has there been any more direct trouble?"

Shiraz shook his head, "Not since Jessica tried to kidnap them." She was a little surprised he said that aloud, where the girls could hear, but a glance back showed the same inscrutable faces staring at her, showing no reaction. "I have no doubt Jessica would like to kidnap the girls, but her Circle is underground, hiding. They cannot afford the resources to make an attempt in Georgia, let alone here in Japan, and certainly not enough keep a pair of school-age girls. But others do have the resources, and..." he trailed off, shrugging.

Hayate understood completely. "We have greatly improved our security, and one of the first things we will do is give each student a tracer-beacon. There _will not _be a repeat of last February. I must admit to some curiosity, though, as to why you accepted my invitation."

Shiraz gave her a strange look, then shrugged. "Primarily, for safety. There are things I must do, both in my business and for Hughes. I cannot stand watch over my girls at all times, and there are few in the Circles I can trust to do so, all of whom are just as busy as I am. You will protect them, February proved that beyond any doubt, and you will also teach them. In time, they will bring that teaching back to the Circles, where we can put it to use, but until then, they will be safe."

They continued their conversation, touching on general points of what the girls would be learning in their first year, until they reached the campus proper. Once there, however, Hayate had Signum take the twins into the dorm, but pulled Shiraz aside. "I knew from initial interviews and research that Saeryn and Rhys are quiet, but they appear to be rather more withdrawn than I had expected. Are they having as much trouble with recent events as I think?"

Shiraz grimaced, staring after his daughters, then nodded, "They have had a very traumatic year. My fights with Jessica, her attempt to kidnap them, the divorce, coming here... yes, they have become more withdrawn. They're leaning on each other even more than they used to, shutting people out more than normal... normal for them, that is." He grimaced again, "they have never been particularly social. They taught each other Latin, a couple years ago, so they could keep their conversations private. Impressive, but it's just another way they shut people out."

"Many children are like that, twins or not," Hayate told him. "Cid-chan was very similar when she arrived here. We'll bring them out as much as they are comfortable, help them understand what has happened, what is happening, around them."

"I would be grateful for only that, let alone the magic and safety," Shiraz said, "just... just, please, make sure they don't hate their mother. She has closed her mind, chosen a violent and hateful path, but... she is still their mother, and I still love her."

"We'll do our best for them," Hayate promised. "I'll speak with the other students privately, as well, make sure they are warned to be careful. We have some very good children here. We'll treat them well."

00000

The day progressed with admirable smoothness, despite Yussef's worries about anything and everything. Per pre-arrangement, he and Noriko checked up on each other and their classmates in the other buildings often, just to make sure there were no problems. Each of the returning students rotated through their dorm wing, the library, and the main workroom at different times, helping with demonstrations and questions for the new students and their parents. It was a significantly compressed version of the orientation week from the preceding year, greatly aided by the returning students' experiences.

Shortly before noon, as the last student arrived, disaster struck from what Yussef ever-after claimed was the destined source.

The problem occurred not with said last student, Didier Akalé from the Ivory Coast, but with an earlier arrival, Mercedes Garibaldi. It was not even her fault, more a combination of bad timing and lack of warning. Heading out of the dorm to check out the library, she encountered Laura, who was on her way back from the library, at moderately high velocity. The fact that Mercedes was talking to her father, and Laura was having a shouted conversation with Mariachi headed the other way, meant neither was looking where they were going.

Luke, standing in the common room with Yussef and Marcel as they introduced themselves to Didier, was staring right at it, saw the entire train-wreck unfold, and the mixture of horror, pity, and amusement froze him in place just long enough that all he got out before the crash was, "Oh, crap."

The others with him looked up just in time to see the impact, to watch Laura's slight frame rebound off Mercedes, sending both of them to the ground. Laura bounced back immediately, naturally, and Luke saw her offer a hand to Mercedes, who snarled something and slapped the hand aside, getting to her feet herself. Any sense of humor about it vanished when he saw that, and Luke sucked in a breath to yell at the new girl.

Yussef's hand on his shoulder cut him off. "Steady," the Arab boy told all of them. "Luke, go rescue Mercedes from the ditz. Marcel, cut off Mariachi. Didier, Mister Akalé, could you please wait here a moment?" Luke was moving before he finished, stalking across the dining room just below a trot.

He reached audible range in time to hear Mercedes' voice, rising with affronted anger, "You need to watch where you're going, little girl! I can't believe you!"

Laura, never one to back down, got right into Mercedes' face, floating off the floor, "I need to watch where I'm going? I said I was sorry, you puffed up rich-girl wanna-be witch! How dare you..."

"Oi, Laura!" Luke reached the confrontation then, vaguely aware of Marcel intercepting Mariachi's return and Yussef crossing the room behind him towards Allison. Thinking fast, Luke told Laura, "Signum-sensei was just here, looking for you." It was not entirely a lie. Signum had passed through, dropping off Didier, and had asked where Laura was, but only as a general question. The lie was, "said something about you missing a sparring session this morning. She didn't look happy."

The anger faded from Laura's face slightly, to a more confused look, "What? We didn't have a session today, she said the first day of classes! That's tomorrow!"  
"First day, or first day of classes?"

"First day of..." the last anger faded to be replaced by pale shock, "Oh, crap. I don't remember. Paradox didn't note it..." She shot a look out the doors, gnawing on a lip worriedly, then grabbed his shirt in both hands. "You've gotta help me, Luke, old buddy, old pal, old friend! Tell her I'm... tell her I'm in the Library!"

Luke chuckled, and disentangled her hands, "Where are you actually going to be?"

She snorted, "Duh, _not _in the Library!" Then she disappeared out the door she had just entered by, launching up and over the dorm wing towards the classroom building.

Still standing beside him, Mercedes watched her go before demanding, "Ugh, what is her problem?"

Luke turned slowly to face her and stepped closer, taking shameless advantage of his six inch height advantage to loom over her, and finally let the anger show on his face. "You," he rumbled, "_do not_, under any circumstances, raise your voice to her. You do not insult her, you don't hit her, you do _nothing_, no matter what she does. You haven't earned the _right_."

"Luke, back off, man," Yussef ordered, "I'll handle it now."

Luke wanted to continue glaring at her, incensed that this upstart girl had been so rude to Laura, but... orders were orders. He stepped back, shook his head once, and turned away, ignoring Mercedes since he could not yell at her. Instead he headed back over to where Didier and his father were watching curiously. "Come on," he said as he reached them, "I'll show you where your room is."

Guillaume Akalé gave him a curious look as they began walking towards the Boys' Wing, "I take it there was more to that than a couple of girls fighting?"

Luke nodded with a grimace. "Laura's special," he said simply, "you have to earn the right to talk back to her. But, that's kinda depressing to think about. You looking forward to a roommate, Didier?"

"Not really," the younger boy replied morosely.

"Good, 'cause you don't have one. None of us do, Hayate-sensei really over-built this place..." He continued on in that vein, anger fading as he talked up the school. Yussef would straighten Mercedes out, he was sure.

00000

Yussef, watched Luke go, nodding approval as the older Australian herded the Akalés off, then turned back to Mercedes, who was now glaring fiercely at Luke's back. "You have a problem with Luke?"

"Why was he on my case? What, is he the midget's boyfriend?"

Yussef frowned at her, disliking her affronted tone, but shook his head. "Laura does not have a boyfriend. She is interested only in magic and battle. For which all of us, you included, should be extremely grateful." He looked away from the olive-skinned girl to her parents, who looked somewhat conflicted themselves. He was unsure if their lack of interference was due to incompetence, uncertainty as to whom and how far to discipline, or simply observation to see how things would play out. Noticing the speculative look in Pietro Garibaldi's eyes, he was tempted to pick the third option. "Have you heard much of what happened last February, Mister Garibaldi?"

Mercedes' father nodded, showing no sign of surprise at the non sequitur, "Some, some. Not much more than was on the news, but some."

"That," Yussef, jerked a thumb at the door, "was Laura Sims. The Black Mage, the media call her, thanks to her armor and her encounter with American reporters back in July. She prefers the self-bestowed moniker of 'Quantum Knight'. She's the fourth-ranked student from last year, Signum's personal apprentice, and the single best fighter in the class. She was the point-woman for our counterattack here at the campus, and takes a large share of the credit for Cid-chan's rescue," He turned back to Mercedes, to find her giving him a disbelieving look, "during the course of which, she risked and nearly lost her life, her soul, and her sanity, for all of us. She fought, in single combat, the man directly responsible for last year's tragedy, and beat him rather severely. She has proven, Mercedes, that she will lay down her life for all of us, even for me, who she would just as soon never see again. You may eventually prove the same, but you have not yet.

"Whatever problem you have with Laura, or with Cid-chan or Noriko, you remain polite, you remain civil. If you cannot manage that, walk away. If you can, explain what they're doing that insults or offends you, and they will usually stop. Even Laura never goes beyond annoyance. If you ever raise your voice to her again as you just did, if you're as rude as you were in refusing her apology, you had best pray that the teachers reach you first. Those of us she defended will not be nearly so forgiving."

She was glaring at him outright now, "She ran into me!"

"And from what I saw, apologized immediately and offered you her hand to get you back on your feet. An offered hand that you slapped away, yes?"

Mercedes glared at him a moment longer, then looked a little sheepish, "Yeah, I guess. But she..."

"It's called an accident, Mercedes," her mother said, resting a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Things happen."

"Don't worry about it too much," Yussef told her, relaxing slightly now that her parents had picked a side, "just don't make the mistake again. Oh, there are some occasions, especially in Laura's case, where a little shouting will be excused, but outright rudeness will not be, whatever the provocation."

Mercedes gave him a dirty look, "And I suppose all of you follow that rule too, huh?"

"With Noriko and Cid-chan, yes. With Laura," he shrugged, "sometimes. The ditz has a habit of pushing people. But we all survived February, we proved almost as thoroughly as Laura that we will lay down our lives for one another. Just be polite, and avoid her as best you can. Or not. You may find her entertaining. Allah knows most everyone else does, for some reason. But you be polite, until you've proven yourself."

"Oh, who are you kidding, Yu-chan," Lotte chimed in, draping an arm around his shoulder then pinching his cheek, "You're _deeply _in love with our resident trouble-magnet, and _every_body knows it."

Yussef pulled free of Lotte's pinch, but knew better than to try and slip her grip on his shoulder. Her usual response to that was to completely drape herself over her victim, and her current position was bad enough. "I am no such thing. She's an annoying but skilled classmate, a reliable fighting partner, and a challenge. Nothing more."

"You'll have to forgive him," Lotte laughed, "he's been in denial since last year."

Pietro gave the cat-woman a searching look, then asked, "I'm curious, Miss Lieze, why you did not interfere? No offense, young man, but it would seem that allowing students to fight like that would be detrimental to learning."

"Oh, we prefer to let the students sort things out, so long as they don't get violent about it," Lotte told him. "If we interfered every time there was trouble, they'd never learn how to handle it themselves, and there would always be the question of if one of them could really look after themselves. This way, they both establish their own arrangements, and learn how to handle uncomfortable situations. There's also the fact that once we get involved, it becomes 'official', and we have to start filling out little forms that stick with the dears for the rest of their lives. Besides, Yu-chan's right. Laura's special, because of what she went through in February. We're all careful and protective of her."

"Also, a mage must ever be in control of themselves," Aria added as she strolled over from the Girls' Wing, "no matter the provocation or situation. Encounters such as this, uncomfortable as they are, provide experience in doing just that. We would have intervened, had Yussef not, or had things progressed to a more hurtful stage. As it is, Laura is annoyed, Mercedes is embarrassed, and both will hopefully learn to watch where they are going and be more careful in their reactions."

"I didn't see Laura getting yelled at," Mercedes countered, though there was no longer any real hostility in her voice.

Aria flicked an ear at her, "Didn't you?"

"Laura's terrified of missing a session with Signum-sensei," Yussef explained, "and of losing her temper. Once she figures out Luke was bluffing, she'll know why he was. Lesson learned."

Mercedes looked doubtful, but her parents were nodding. Pietro returned to studying him for a moment, then asked, "Tell me, son, do all the students here jump at your orders? They moved like quite the well trained crew."

Yussef shrugged, more than a little uncomfortable. _Sure, they guys do pretty well,_ he thought, _but that's as much their will as mine. They're far from 'well trained'._ "Not everyone does, sir, and certainly not in every situation. The boys are just in the habit, a result of some extracurricular work we did last year and the rescue missions. Luke and Marcel were with me when Zafira-sensei, Aria-sensei, and Lotte-sensei took us into New Delhi, for instance. But that's history, and you folks were on your way elsewhere, I believe." He waved Allison over, "This is Allison Caeghlin, a second year like me. Allison, could you please show them over to the Library. Also, could you let Noriko know I'd like to talk to her, please?"

"What do I look like, your personal messenger or something?"

Yussef matched her grin with a blank look. "Right now you do, yeah."

"Tche, punk," Allison countered, punching his shoulder lightly as she passed, carefully avoiding Lotte's arm. "Come on, Mercedes, I'll show you our local version of Purgatory."

As they walked away, Lotte finally stood up from leaning on him, and asked, "you do realize, Laura's going to make her life unbearable until she apologizes, right?"

Yussef nodded, grimacing at the thought. "Mercedes will no doubt react just like any of us would have last year, which will just encourage the ditz. Hence my talking to Noriko. Laura might listen to her and back off. For now, however, I better go see how much damage Luke has done."

00000

The parents were shown around until shortly before dinner time, and slowly cycled home in the same order they had arrived. Hayate had decided before the previous year even finished not to extend the families' stays, and by dinner the only people still on campus were those who would be there all year. The second-year students quickly resumed their old seating arrangements, and the first years gathered by unspoken agreement at a neighboring table.

Settling gingerly down with his tray next to several of his fellow first-years, Jun could not help staring over at the two tables occupied by the second-years. He could not really call them rowdy or anything, but they were much definitely louder than the first-years, and none too shy about carrying on conversations not just up and down their tables, but between the two. It was quite obvious to him that they were all old friends, getting reacquainted after a long while apart.

Thinking back on what he had seen in the course of the day, both the deliberate demonstrations and the not-so-deliberate ones, watching the easy camaraderie, he muttered, "Man, those guys are scary."

"Not really," the oriental girl next to him said. He recognized her face, but did not remember her name. "They've just been here longer. We'll be just like that next year," she hesitated, then smiled widely, "or better."

"So you hope," Jun countered. "Didn't you hear what they did last year?"

"Yup," she answered, still smiling, "they rocked hard. It'll be fun, seeing if we can do the same." She stuck out a hand, "Sorry, I forget your name. Mao Chen-chi, outta Taiwan."

Jun grinned back at that, "Ah, a rebel, then. Xie Jun, from Beijing."

Chen-chi's smile vanished for a moment, then reappeared in a smaller form, "Oh, you're going to be fun, aren't you?"

Jun chuckled and shrugged, "Plan on it, so long as it doesn't get in the way." He turned back to watching the second-years, and had to do a double-take when he realized one of the girls was now upside down over the table, chatting with several of the others, a bowl of something in her lap. Staring at her in confusion for a moment, head twisting as he tried to puzzle out the contradictions, he asked, "Shouldn't her hair be hanging down? Or the food falling? Or something?"

"I was talking with Noriko-san," the boy across from him rumbled as he twisted back around from his own look, "that's Laura Sims. Apparently, she's crazy. Breaking school rules isn't enough of a challenge for her or something, so she breaks the rules of physics." He nodded to each of them, "Verner Metzger, Nuremberg Germany."

"Escher Step, it's called," Chen-chi told them, "I asked her when she was giving a demo. She's _definitely_ fun."

Jun was going to reply, when a flicker of motion at his elbow made him flinch. When the motion resolved into a cream and black Siamese cat, he huffed once and relaxed. "Man, cat, you scared the heck out of me." He reached out one hand, letting it sniff at his fingertips. When it butted its head against his hand, and gently started scratching its ears, smiling as a buzzing purr sounded. "I didn't know they had pets here."

The cat flinched back just then, ears going flat, and swatted his hand once, though he felt no claws. He jerked his hand back, wondering about the cat's sudden change of attitude, and watched it warily as it stuck its nose and tail in the air and gingerly wended its way down the table. Once it was next to Chen-chi, it paused, and relaxed from its haughty attitude, sniffing at plates and trays. Chen-chi shooed it away, but it just started purring again, and attacked her hand playfully. For a few seconds, the cat was the center of attention at their table, trading swats with Chen-chi, until a green-clad arm stretched over the empty chair next to Verner and scooped the cat up.

Shamal brought the cat around until it was nose to nose with her, smiling slightly, and said, "You're not supposed to have your feet on the table, Megan-chan." The cat meowed once, struggled for a moment, then visibly slumped in Shamal's hand. She put the cat down, and a moment later, its form disappeared into a yellow glow that rapidly expanded. When it cleared, a brown-haired western girl stood there, grinning up at Shamal.

"Sorry about that, sensei," she said, "got a little carried away."

"I didn't say you had to shift back," Shamal said, "just keep your feet off the table, dear."

"Hai, sensei."

"Man, Tigger," Laura caroled, "I didn't think you'd actually go through with it!"

Megan stuck her nose in the air and countered, "It was a good way to see how they're doing! Unlike your idea of throwing them off the overlook to teach them to fly."

Jun flinched at that, looking over to see the floating girl smirking at them. "Oh come on, Tigger," Laura laughed, "Yu-chan would've caught them."

Megan just snorted, then turned her back on Laura and hauled out the chair Shamal had leaned over. "So, now that the secret's out, how _are _you kids doing?"

All of them just stared at her for a few seconds, before Mercedes demanded from the end of the table, "You spy on us, turn it into a _joke _on us, and expect us to answer that?"

"Wasn't a joke," Megan protested.

"Megan is simply more comfortable in other forms," Noriko explained, settling into the seat next to her, "and despite her secrecy last year, has a tendency to forget that not everyone knows she can shapeshift."

Megan gave her a look, then shifted it to Didier, pointing an accusing finger at him. "I know you knew," she said, "I showed you, showed you that form, not an hour ago."

Didier nodded, "I remember. But nobody asked."

"You could have just said something," Jun commented. Didier just ducked his head and shrugged, obviously uncomfortable.

"But you could have noticed," Noriko countered. "When you called her a pet, she swatted you, ne? Her behavior should have warned you. But, take it as a lesson. Nothing here is quite what it appears to be, everything can surprise, and nothing should be taken personally."

Mercedes quirked an eyebrow and actually smiled, "Not even you, Noriko-san?"

Noriko matched the smile with a more mysterious one, and shook her head, "What would you say I appear to be?"

"The girl in charge," Mercedes replied, "the one everyone else follows like a school of fish."

Noriko shook her head, "Close, but not quite. I'd say, I'm sort of an 'elder sister'. They'll listen to me, because I've proven they can trust me to listen to them. I have no real authority, though, just trust."

Mercedes gave her a doubtful look, "I thought you were second place last year, right?"

Noriko's smile grew slightly, shifting from serene to amused, "Do you know by how much?" Mercedes shook her head, and Noriko twisted about in her seat, gesturing to one of the boys. "Ichigo there had the unfortunate distinction of coming in at sixteenth place last year, with an overall grade of ninety-two point eight seven out of one hundred. Niranjana," another gesture, "came in first, with an overall grade of ninety-four point seven six. She beat me by seven hundredths of a point, Laura and Yussef by point eight hundredths of a point." Noriko turned back to Mercedes disbelieving look, still smiling, "do you really think a grade difference of less than three percent gives me any authority?"

"That didn't help, Noriko-san," Jun commented sourly. "How are we supposed to measure up to _that _sort of track record?"

"The same way we did," Megan laughed, "by not trying. Don't worry about your grades, just worry about learning. Trust me, as interesting and exciting as these classes are, you're not going to have any trouble getting grades your parents will approve of. The best part is, we'll have fun doing it!"

00000

Simon Arlain, Formerly a respected sergeant of Her Majesty's Special Air Service, now an 'honorably discharged' civilian, stepped off the still-rumbling C-130's ramp, and automatically slid sideways, clearing the route of those behind him while remaining in the relative shelter of the hulking transport aircraft. Looking about as the cargo pallets continued to slide down the rollers, he was distinctly unimpressed.

The facility appeared to consist solely of a single runway, a lone hangar, and two other buildings next to that, one single story, one two-story, all covered in bleached peeling paint. The surrounding terrain was monotonously flat, brown, and lifeless under a crystal clear blue sky. The heat shimmer coming off the surrounding terrain argued that, contrary to normal physics, the searing heat of the tarmac under his boots was the local cool spot. To the north and west he could see mountains hulking up towards the sky, but they were hazy and blue with distance.

"Bloody wonderful," he muttered. "Drop what you're doing, dump your whole bloody life, and high-tail it out to some frakin' colonial desert. Bloody Grand Master Hughes and his bloody _vision_."

A chuckle made him turn, to find a short, wide American, bald and sunburned where his t-shirt and jeans didn't cover, leaning against the side of the aircraft. "This is an all-volunteer job, Arlain," the man commented, "bitching about it's pretty silly, when it's your own damn fault you're here."

Arlain frowned at him, "Who're you, then?"

The man shoved off the plane and stepped closer, holding out a hand that Arlain took cautiously. He had a strong grip, but not crushing, just confident. "Name's Schuster, Edward Schuster. North American Ops."

Arlain quirked an eyebrow, noting the lack of any other allegiance. The man moved like military, and the majority of Ops mages had been, at least briefly, military. The experience and training was too valuable for what they did. "What service?"

Schuster grinned back, "None. Never saw the point. I've been pure Circle Ops, all the way. That your only bag?" Arlain nodded. "Come on, then. We'll get you settled with the others. You're the last to arrive, which means we can finally get this show off the ground."

Schuster started walking, heading for the single-story building, and Arlain was obliged to follow. He caught up, walking beside the other man, and asked, "So, what is this show, anyhow? All Hughes' orders said was to drop everything and show up, 'for the good of the Circles', or some such nonsense."

"You're aware of the whole Modern/Revenant split, of course," Schuster said. "What you probably don't realize is that seventy to eighty percent of Ops, worldwide, went over to the Revenants. That gives them a tremendous advantage in terms of operational flexibility and initiative. Most of our Ops types are now tied down in quick-response forces and guarding critical sites."

"Yeah, that's what I was doing," Arlain told him, "and doing a bloody good job of it, too. My boys don't have the foggiest how to handle a Revenant attack without me, and that punk who showed up as my replacement's so wet-behind-the-ears I think he was wearing a diaper under that pretty uniform."

"Probably was," Schuster agreed with another chuckle, "but what we're doing here should take the pressure off him, along with everyone else."

The statement made immediate sense to Arlain, and he almost froze in surprise. Then the full implications occurred to him, and he found himself smiling. "We're a strike team," he said with relish and excitement, "a _first _strike team."

Schuster nodded. "Mostly, yup. We're Hughes' poisoned dagger, the quiet weapon that'll start getting those bass-ackwards nutjobs to shut up and behave. And once the Revenants are under control, we're the ones who'll get to teach the Yagami witch what the bear does to the buckwheat." He paused, hand on the door to the building, "Welcome to Hughes' Black Dogs, Sergeant Arlain, the sharp end of the Circle's sword."

00000

Turo watched the display carefully, noting the structure of the readings as they came to a conclusion, and shook his head a little sadly. "I'm afraid that is the limit of our information, Master Adept. Without accessing the old large-area arrays, I won't be able to get much more information. I'm sorry."

Nodding slowly, Yosho rested a reassuring hand on the younger man's shoulder. "I'll see if I can arrange for you to use the arrays, Journeyman. Perhaps a 'maintenance check', or theoretical refinements. For now, though..." He leaned over Turo's shoulder, and entered a string of commands at his station. A sub-window appeared in the display, and Yosho scrolled through the options, until he located the one he was looking for. A few more commands, and, "Send that signal, general broadcast, as much power as you can generate with it without needing special access permissions."

Turo gave him a concerned look, "Are you certain, sir? Those things are..."

"I'm sure," Yosho said. "There can't be many left, but those that do remain will make an excellent tool for evaluating our opposition."

"Are we certain there is opposition?"

"The traitors are still out there, Turo, you can rely on it. The sooner we begin gathering information on them, the better."

"It will take me a few hours to access the broadcast arrays," Turo said. "I'll report to you as soon as I have any response."

"And no one else."

"Understood, Master Adept.

00000

billyjiahaogao: Glad you liked it. The new kids should be all sorts of intriguing.

CrimsonDX: yup, third of the Deva magic stories. I debated not including the quote from the future, but re-wrote it a few times to try and keep it deliberately vague... we'll see how well I succeeded. As for the new kids & Tai-yu, time will tell:).

Baughn: On the one hand, I'm sorry to be disappointing you with how my stories are varying from canon. On the other hand, I'm glad you're still willing to read. I will admit there are more fantastic elements to this so far, but I've never really been able to separate fantasy and sci-fi – they're both about worlds that can't actually exist. In my defense, however, I said in a prior review-reply Natalia doesn't actually see ghosts – 'Sasha' is a magical construct along the lines of Akira and what the Wolkenritter originally were. Atarsamain's apparent precognitive ability is beyond the norm, but there are some surprising things going on in physics these days that seem to suggest limited time travel – not to the scale of allowing viewing of the future, admittedly, but still. Natalia's ability is as much about reading present energies/probabilities as seeing the future. The Al Hazred language is not inherently evil, it just lacks certain concepts of humility and 'pride is dangerous', and it evolved (at least in my stories) specifically as a method of manipulating magical energies efficiently. It does have an evil history, but that's because of Al Hazred's fall and because most of the people who have learned it since then – and all those who did so while gaining fame – had more than a few screws loose. As for how dangerous it is, any linguistics professor can argue quite well that the structure of a language influences how its speakers think and view the world, and the Al Hazred language's inherent arrogance, combined with its inherent magical connotations, would give sane mage pause. I know the nicknames from the 'future quote' are melodramatic, and part of it was just me having fun. But most of those names come from the Terran Mage-War referenced in the same quote, and major figures pick up nicknames, because soldiers are superstitious and melodramatic types – for instance, ever hear of the Desert Fox? While the initial reaction by the population at large to Hayate's announcement was bland, that reaction has changed as events have progressed, and it will be described eventually, though there are hints in several chapters. As far as the 'failing weather control machines'… you've been reading Anne McCaffery, haven't you? Thanks for reading!

AceStarLeaf: Glad you liked the first chapter.

liingo: Thank you for the review. I've actually been writing this since late December, but kept making changes as what I wrote and what I (tried) to outline refined into a better plan. Omar was just a joke that occurred to me as I was picturing how any teenage male would react to first seeing Signum. I'm glad you liked the history section, and I am _not_ sorry about confusing you with the final quote, since confusion's part of why it's there. Mostly, though, it helped me establish in my mind what was going to happen in the story, and I decided to leave it (suitably modified) as a sort of teaser. I was originally thinking of putting similar quotes at the end of each chapter, but found myself revealing the entire plot at the end of the third chapter.

Kainti: Thank you for reading, and for reviewing. As for whether or not Hayate looses… that's a very good question. I'll get back to you on it:).

Ray Venn Hakubi: Yup, the third story, and that does mean more variance from canon (though I am finally watching StrikerS… slowly). Merudach and Atarsamain were Circle mages (witness – the rank she calls him by – First Mage of the Grand Circle) from the time of Atlantis' fall. Some of their story will be related as 'background' on the Circles in future chapters. As for the callsigns, I mostly explained those replying to Baughn – partly they were for fun, partly to keep a little mystery, and partly because, given the situations I plan, popular knowledge will give them those names ('Quantum Knight' being much more recognizable to John Doe Random than 'Laura Sims'). Have fun guessing, most of them will be revealed in good time, but your guesses of Morrigan/Nagalia and Wrack and Ruin/The Twins were half right (you'll see which half shortly). Thanks for the review!

Natimus Prime: Foreshadowing was the point, yes. I didn't make the clues to the plot as clear as I wanted, but my attempts to do so made it _too_ obvious. The history/origin of the Lords of Light will be revealed as part of this story, as will the Circles' origins. Here's the next chapter, and thanks for reviewing!

Marine Brother Shran: Integrating the new kids will be one of the challenges for me (making it believable as well as fitting it into the plot). The twins' views and attitudes will be a problem for everyone. Thank you for the spelling correction, I've corrected it, but don't worry about hiragana – I am unfortunately illiterate in Japanese writing. Thanks for the review!

SpaceBrotha: Yeah, I finally got tired of waiting to get the outline 'perfected', and decided to force things by starting to post. I've got the general plan, and enough notes to keep going for a while, so hopefully I should be able to finish the outline before I run out of finished outline. The first section last chapter was supposed to be a bit of a punch in the gut, as was the final section. If you're really interested in where I got the names from, go with the wiki. Thanks for the review!

Eternal-Longing: Thank you for the compliments, and the review. As far as the little mistakes, I'm not perfect, but will make corrections. I won't wait until the end this time, probably every couple of chapters. I have to admit I'm cheating (sort of:) at the variety of the characters – One of my majors was History, and thanks to my father's job, I've lived over-seas a couple times, both of which give me a long list of 'little details' that lend veracity. I am not in any way shape or form an expert on any culture except American, but I know enough to give the characters realism (and, so far, not offend anyone). Personally, I've always liked the idea of an Empire. It makes for great heroic and villainous characters, events, organizations and situations. Thanks again for the review!

pfeil: Yup, new story. Though I insist I never left, I've just been lurking.


	3. 02 Festivities Begin

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

For a change, Hayate was in class before her students, instead of after them, on the first day. Only three of them had not been jittery with excitement that morning, and one of those three did not count, being always jittery. Her checks through the day had, understandably, shown no diminution of that excitement. Everyone knew what today's topic would be, and they were patently eager to begin. So she was there early, to help keep everyone calm, and to make sure they could begin immediately on the bell.

Early or not, she did not step up to the podium and actually start until the bell rang. Even before it did ring, she had their complete attention, even more so than normal. Even Laura, Noriko and Yussef were giving her their undivided attention. "Good afternoon, students," she said, "As I'm sure you all realize, today we begin work on your devices. Since none of you opted out of the class, that means we're going to have quite the demanding semester. As you know, Noriko, Yussef and Laura took approximately four months to design and construct their devices, working in secret in stolen hours, figuring things out for themselves, and _attempting _to avoid my notice." She smiled, remembering Noriko's consternation on realizing their 'secret' had been no such thing, and found Noriko returning the expression ruefully.

"In this class, we think you should be able to move along quite a bit faster, even if we do intersperse the device lessons with other theoretical work. The fact that I'll be able to actually answer your questions, instead of making you look up absolutely everything, will help, as will access to proper tools in the practical side of the course. We'll also be better able to help you avoid design errors such as those that delayed the trio.

"Before we get down to specifics, though, there are some things you need to be aware of." She delivered the lecture she had planned on the dangers and responsibilities of having and using a device, but was quietly pleased at how much shorter the lecture was than the one she had written out prior to last year. Her children had proven much more mature than she had originally expected and feared, and they had demonstrated remarkable restraint – for the most part – over the summer with their training devices. They also had the shining example of Noriko's injuries to drive home the point about dangers, and none of them let their attention drift in the least while she was speaking.

When she finished with that, she opened the floor to questions, and was immediately met with a room full of raised hands. Chuckling at their eagerness, she pointed to Luke, right up in front.

"Just a curiosity, sensei, but why are Noriko, Yussef and Laura in here? Shouldn't they be in their own class?"

Hayate shook her head slightly. "Iie, not yet. The three of them managed to build devices, yes, but they did not really study the underlying theories and principles. To be blunt, they know how to make it work, but not why it works. Also, their practical experience will help all of you in designing and building your devices. They'll be a cross between fellow students, and teacher's assistants. It also relieves me of the headache of retooling our curriculum for three sneaks." Then she pointed to Allison.

Allison leaned forward on her forearms, "Are we all going to be building Midchildan devices? I had some ideas for a Velka device, like Laura's."

"We will allow Velka designs," Hayate said, smiling at the memory of the non-debate when she had broached the subject with her Knights. Their down-right eagerness to allow Velka devices was a little vexing, given how militantly opposed they had been to letting her build Reinforce into one, before she received Sara's bequest, but she could understand their point. "I would be facing a mutiny if I did not, from both you and Vita. We will not, however, be allowing Deva designs. Noriko received those components through even more underhanded means than the rest of the parts they used," _if not quite the underhanded means she thinks,_ Hayate silently amended, "and I am still unwilling to encourage anyone to pursue Deva magic. Which is not to say you have to construct a Velka device. They are not suited to all magical pursuits. Shamal, for instance, does not have a Velka device, in the common understanding. Such devices are optimized for combat, and delicate work such as healing is far more difficult with such a device. That decision is one of those we will help you make."

Allina barely waited for Hayate to look at her before asking, "Is it possible to have devices communicate, like a computer network?"

"I suppose it's possible," Hayate said after a moment, thinking it over. "But no one ever does. A device is, after all, an extension of the mage. Even without Deva Magic's unique fusion, a device is very closely tied to the mage that uses it, roughly analogous to a PDA that also contains your personal diary and health information. Not something anyone wants to grant easy access to."

Allina's answering smile was not reassuring, and her whispered comment to Niranjana, just audible, was even less reassuring. "Hear that, 'Jana? Devices can be hacked!"

_Kami-sama help us all if she's right,_ Hayate thought, then made a mental note to check over her devices, and her Knights', to protect against such an assault.

00000

After their introduction to Lotte-sensei's idea of 'a light workout', Ekavir headed straight for the library. His classmates, unknowingly emulating their predecessors, went back to the dorms to clean up and change, but he had another mission, and hoped to get a jump on any competition. It had not taken much effort, once his father accepted Hayate's invitation, to find out whom among the second-years, had gotten the best grades, and he had felt more than a touch of pride when he found out it was a fellow Indian. Now he was looking for her, and had a fairly good idea where she would be. Sure enough, when he entered the front door, he saw her sitting at one of the tables in the main area, using one of the workstations.

He moved over to stand across the table from her and said in Hindi, "Excuse me, Miss Konoth? Could I bother you for a few minutes?"

She looked up, blinking wide brown eyes at him, then nodded, "Certainly, Ekavir. You can call me Niranjana, though. As Noriko is fond of saying, we are not so formal here. What can I do for you?"

For a moment, Ekavir did not hear her, finding himself staring at her eyes, then jolted when she blinked again. "Ah, sorry, thank you," he said, settling into a chair across from her. "I was wondering, if I could ask you for a favor?"

"That depends on the favor," she replied, "though I would guess, you are looking for someone to tutor you?"

He flushed, embarrassed both to be making the request, and to have been so transparent, but nodded. "That is what I was hoping for, yes. Headmistress Yagami's course, in particular, is worrying me."

Niranjana shook her head, "I think, Ekavir, that you should give it a few weeks before you worry about such things. I do not object in general, but you should learn where you actually need help, and who is best to provide it. It took all of us several weeks last year to come to such conclusions."

_At least she didn't say no outright,_ Ekavir thought to himself. "I thought of that, but after what we started with today, I am already concerned."

"Oh, I understand," Niranjana told him, "Just... it's a little early to be this concerned. Trust in our teachers, they know what they're doing."

Further protest as interrupted by a shout from above in Japanese, "Oi, 'Jana-chan! Found it!" Ekavir could hear someone running upstairs, and watched Niranjana look up there, a small smile appearing on her face. Looking himself, he saw another second year, who he needed a second to remember was the Brazilian girl, Allina. She completely ignored him to wave a book over her head, "Takamichi Yuuno-san's book on advanced device programming!"

"Bring it down, please, Allina-chan," Niranjana called up in Japanese. Then she turned back to Ekavir, reverting to Hindi. "Like I said, give it a few weeks, give yourself a chance to get your feet under you and get up to speed. If you really are having trouble then, I'll see who would be best to help you. For the moment though..."

Allina landed in the chair next to her with a thud, dropping the book on the table, and finally noticing Ekavir's presence. "Hey, Ekavir," she said absently, before reaching across Niranjana to snatch up the PDA on the table, "so, 'Jana-chan, you think we can do what I was talking about over the summer? Hayate-sensei said it was possible."

"She said she _supposed_ it was possible," Niranjana replied, then shrugged at Ekavir. "I'm sorry, Ekavir, but would you mind? This project has been our focus all summer, we're rather eager to get started."

He was a little put out by Allina's unthinking interruption, but not enough to overcome his unwillingness to in any way challenge one of the older students. Noriko's reassurances the night before had been nice, but Ekavir still agreed with Jun – the second years were just plain scary. So instead of protesting, he nodded politely, "I will ask again in a week, Konoth-san."

He was not actually disappointed, he had half-expected to be outright refused. So he was actually in a fairly good mood as he headed into the shelves, studying the layout of the library for future reference.

00000

Confident that Signum would not expect her instantly after class, Laura went hunting for her latest prey immediately after class let out. Conveniently, she found the twins in the last place most of her classmates would have expected to find any of the first-years – a workroom. _Precocious of them,_ she thought happily when she felt their magic through the small room's shields, _so they're just what I'm looking for._ She triggered the locks herself, stepping through to find matching pairs of bright blue eyes staring fixedly at her. "Hey, girls! No worries, just me. Wanted to talk to you about an idea of mine."

The two stared at her for a moment longer, then said in unison, "we are trying to study, Sims-san. Please leave us be."

Laura felt the laughter bubbling up, but limited herself to a smile, "Oh, you poor silly girls. You have to realize that was a challenge, and I never turn down a challenge."

They blinked at her and frowned, one a fraction of a second before the other. "Please, Sims-san, we only wish to pursue our studies in peace."

"Booorrrrinnnggg! Nope, not gonna let ya!" The frown deepened, but Laura plowed on, "Look, I need a little help, and you two are perfect for it. Just enough magic to get the job done, but not enough to be suspicious. You're also freaky, which is cool, and no one knows what to make of you, so they'll give you the benefit of the doubt. Hence, you're perfect for what I'm thinking."

"We are not interested," they told her flatly.

She was not really surprised by their abruptness – they had militantly kept to themselves since arriving – and rather enjoyed the challenge. "Look, Hayate-sensei and Signum-sensei told me to be nice to you two, so that's what I'm going to do."

"Which would entail leaving," one of them said, the first solitary comment Laura had heard from either of them.

Laura chuckled, waggling a finger at her. "It's not polite to interrupt your elders, Sa-chan."

"A guess," Rhys said, "no one but Mother and Father can distinguish us."

Laura could not help laughing aloud at that, shaking her head, "No, no, Rhys, that wasn't a guess. Saeryn's got better control than you do over her magic and herself. Your eyebrow keeps twitching, Ry-chan. I've got more bad news for you, too – Hayate-sensei and other teachers can tell you apart as well." She reached out, putting just a little magic in her hand, and slid that hand over Rhys' head, pausing when it got just behind her ear, and a corresponding glow appeared. "You've got trace markers, all of us do, and I know how to tell them apart."

Rhys swatting her hand away was a surprise, and Laura reacted without thinking, grabbing the younger girl's wrist and twisting it to lock her arm. Rhys snarled at her, but it was Saeryn who said, "Let her go."

Laura glanced over at her, to find her holding out one hand with a glowing charge cupped in her palm. The older girl chuckled, and let go of Rhys, backing off a step. "Man, I thought she was the violent one."

"No one is permitted to attack us," they told her unison.

"Wasn't an attack. I'll show you both some of those later." Laura straightened up and shivered all over, relaxing out of the combat-tenseness Saeryn's threat had woken. Then she gestured past Saeryn's shoulder. "You also need to work on your awareness, if you're going to dance with me."

The twins stared at her distrustfully for a moment, before Rhys shifted her head to look past her sister. Floating a meter or so behind Saeryn's head was a small contraption of plastics about ten centimeters long, half that around, and terminating in what looked like a gun barrel. That was when Laura became convinced the twins were not telepathic or 'twin linked', as Saeryn did not react until Rhys overcame her shock well enough to reach out to carefully tug her out of the line of fire.

"That's one of my BFB drones," Laura said, as the drone faded back into Paradox's dimensional pocket, "I've improved on them some, over the summer. Better camouflage, a little more efficient, much more survivable. But! I'm not here to threaten you girls, quite the contrary." She grinned at them again, letting her anticipation and amusement boil over again, "I'm here to recruit you."

"We're not interested," Rhys repeated.

"Yes you are. Look, you girls can brush me off. Enough stubborn refusal has been known to convince me to turn my attention elsewhere... once. Of course, that punk had to move to another state to pull it off, but it did work. I should look him up, actually, see if he remembers me." Laura thought that over for a second, making a mental note to look up her old buddy Jeff and see whatever became of him. Then she shook her head and refocused on the subject at hand. "You can do that, and let everyone here go on thinking you're the creepy little Stepford Twins, in which case you'll leave here with exactly as many friends as you arrived with, after you flunk out. Or, you can take a little risk, lend me a hand, let me lend you a hand, have some fun, and maybe make a few friends in the process. At the least, you'll convince everyone that you're human. I think it was Didier asked at breakfast if you two were robots or something. I think he thinks Hayate-sensei builtyou out of spare device parts or something."

"We do not..."

"What do you want us to do?" Rhys blinked, and stared at her sister in obvious surprise when Saeryn cut her off.

Before Laura could answer the question, the two launched into a rapid argument in a language Laura did not follow. It was obvious to her, though, that Rhys was confused and doubting what Saeryn was telling her, and Saeryn was arguing to go along. _Good,_ Laura thought, _if I get one of them, I get both, and the sooner they learn to play well with others, the better. I wonder if I can convince Signum-sensei to take them on?_

"Fine," the twins said, breaking off Laura's thoughts, "what is it you want of us?"

Laura could not help giggling as her plans came together. "Oh, nothing much. I just need you two to deliver something for me, and set the trigger after delivery. Gather round, girls, I'll give you a quick primer on magical triggers, and explain precisely what's going to happen."

She gave the two a short but detailed explanation of what she had planned, which earned her a matched pair of disbelieving looks. "Isn't that going a little far, Sims-san?"

Laura shook her head, "not really, it's all inside the rules."

"Rules?"

"Rules, prank rules," Laura said. At their blank looks she sighed heavily, "why does no one ever bother to learn the rules? See, if it doesn't fall inside the rules, it's not a prank, and probably criminal. Rule one is 'no permanent damage', nothing that's going to be irreversible. If there's damage, that makes it impossible to follow rule number two. Rule Two is 'initially upset but later amuse the target'. It has to make them angry or embarrassed at first, but they have to able to laugh at it later, once they calm down. There's a third rule out there somewhere, but I kinda forget it most of the time. Something about bystanders, but that one's easy, just redefine who 'the target' is. Crazy as what I'm planning is, it still meets the rules."

"If you say so," Rhys muttered doubtfully, "it still seems excessive to me."

"That's the ticket to making them remember," Laura protested. "If it's not excessive, they'll just brush it off. It's also half the fun, seeing what craziness you can get away with."

"Yagami-sensei lets you get away with all of this?"

"Generally, yeah. Depends on how far I push, but it's usually Signum-sensei who gets me for things. She's the resident disciplinarian, though her idea of 'punishment' is pretty fun, too. That's how I got her to start teaching me weapons-work last year, pulled a prank on Shiro-chan that relied on the reflexes she'd already been teaching me. She saw it, got a little unhappy, and took after me with Levantine in the next session. Fun all around!"

The twins looked at her for a moment, then said in unison, "You're insane."

00000

First day or not, as soon as classes were over for the day, Mariachi snagged his guitar and headed out into the quad. The weather was nice and he needed the break, though not as badly as the year before. He also figured it would give him a chance to watch the new kids after they'd had a chance to adjust to the campus' oddities.

He found his favorite tree from last year, and settled down in the hollow of two roots, facing the dorm at a bit of an angle. Cidela was sitting on one of the benches in the dorm courtyard reading, Toushiro and Ichigo were arguing their way across the quad back towards the workrooms, and Juliet was jogging the path around the quad. As he was tuning the guitar, he watched Esmeralda trot out of the Girls' Wing towards the library, following Verner and Chen-Chi, but he did not see any of the others.

He started playing, simple tunes to get his fingers warmed up, and noticed the trio of new kids stop and look. They watched for a little bit, talked it over, then headed on. Mariachi watched them go with a mental shrug. If they became interested, he would enjoy the audience, if not he would find someone else to listen, he always could.

He started tuning out the world again, focusing on his music, shifting to more complicated, newer music. Despite Laura and Toushiro attempting to convince him, the year before, to pursue their favorite types of music, Mariachi had found very little of either to like. Their requests had, however, lead him to new music and he had taken a library of songs home on his PDA over the summer. Learning to actually read music had been a challenge, mostly due to conflicts between what he had learned himself and what he thought he was reading, but he had managed it well enough. Now he began working his way through a few of the new songs, and he smiled in pride and pleasure as music made famous by Page, Hendrix, and Fogarty soared across a Japanese valley.

He was about half way through _Travelin' Band_ when a quiet step interrupted his focus. He managed to keep playing until he looked up and realized who was standing over him.

"Ano, Mariachi?" Cid-chan was looking at her feet more than him, Rafiq curled loosely around her neck. "Would you mind if Rafiq and I sat here?" She gestured at another hollow, partly around the tree, then back at the bench, "we could not hear very well from over there, and it was very nice."

To say he was surprised was an understatement. No one _asked _to listen to him play, they just _did_, it was one of the reasons he played. But Cidela was quite obviously worried about being rude, so he nodded. "Sure, Cid-chan, you don't have to ask. If there's anything you want to hear, just ask."

"Could... could you play the song you used to use in the Library all the time?"

He smiled at that. "Sure, _Arabia_'s easy by now. Never quite the same, it's a jam piece, but fun."

Cidela smiled back, not quite as hesitantly as she would have prior to February, and moved around to her chosen spot, folding her legs under her. "Thank you, Mariachi. Everything you play sounds different each time, though. I like that, it keeps the music new."

"That's not really any skill on my part," Mariachi protested as he segued _Travelin' Band _into _Arabia_, "it's just an effect of live music. No one plays the same song the same way twice."

"I still like it," She said, re-opening her book as Rafiq slid down to curl in her lap. "I got used to it last year, and missed it over the summer."

00000

Esmeralda trotted out of the dorm after a shower and change of clothes, and mentally thanked her lucky stars once again that she had always loved dancing. The training from her mother and previous school meant that, unlike most of her new school-mates, she was used to strenuous physical activity and in excellent shape. Of course, what she was used to was relatively predictable _dancing_, not standing around lobbing magical energies or, more worrisome, _dodging _those same energies unleashed by classmates and teacher alike – but the principle held, and while Mercedes, Chen-chi, and Jun had been complaining about aching knees and general tiredness while walking back from class, Esmeralda was actually feeling pretty good.

She noticed Verner and Chen-chi ahead of her, and accelerated to catch up. She was almost there when the gentle sound of guitar strings caught her attention, and she paused to look around. She found the source easily enough, one of the second years sitting under a tree. _Huh, I guess his nickname's not a joke,_ she thought, watching his fingers plucking at the strings. She was no musician herself, but she had danced in front of enough of them to recognize the skills. She could tell he was not so much playing as warming up, but even so she found herself tapping one foot, contemplating dancing instead of checking out the library as she had planned. But discipline and first-day homework won out, and she stepped over to her classmates. "Come on, let's go see what the Library's hiding, huh?"

Verner nodded, and began walking again. "We'll get a chance to listen later. He'll probably never stop playing, if his nickname is any indication."

"Unless the mouse distracts him," Chen-chi commented.

That comment confused Esmeralda for a moment, until Chen-chi jerked her head back towards the dorms. Looking over, Esmeralda finally noticed Cidela sitting on a bench, a book dangling from her hands, watching Mariachi warm up. She almost giggled at the thought of the quiet girl distracting a musician, but was quickly distracted herself. A motion in Cidela's lap resolved itself into a snake slithering around her torso and shoulders, apparently without Cidela noticing. Recognizing the girl's 'familiar', Esmeralda shuddered a little. "Oof, just when I start thinking normal things about this place," she muttered.

Chen-chi chuckled at that. "Yeah, but imagine how cool it would be to be one of them? Especially her, she's created her own servant."

"Rafiq is not a servant," Verner told them. "He is a familiar, as are Zafira-sensei, Aria-sensei and Lotte-sensei. There are differences. Remember Hayate-sensei's explanation – she maintains three permanent flows of power to her familiars, without those flows three of our teachers would cease to exist. Cidela must do the same for Rafiq. Given how much power maintaining that life must take, she cannot have much left over for such things as schoolwork."

Esmeralda nodded at that, remembering when the question came up that afternoon. Hayate had explained only a little, not getting into how the familiars were built or how much energy they required, but she had made it clear that it was no minor undertaking. Of course, that line of thought only brought her to one conclusion, one Chen-chi reached at the same time.

"That just makes them scarier," the smaller girl commented, "didn't she create Rafiq early last year?"

"They're not scary," Verner insisted, "they just know more than we do. A lack we can correct, if we merely pay attention to what we are learning, as opposed to who learned it before us."

Chen-chi gave him a jaundiced look, "You always this dull?"

Verner shrugged, "it's easier to just take things in stride. Everything works out in the end, if you just stay calm and focused. We have more important things to worry about than our schoolmates, like passing. According to Noriko-senpai, they may even help."

"They don't intimidate you in the least?" Esmeralda could not believe that. Even her parents had been impressed by what the older students had accomplished here last year.

Another slow shrug, what she realized was probably the German's signature expression. "I'm impressed, yes, and I respect them, but being intimidated is pointless. They are not our enemies."

Esmeralda nodded, seeing his point and taking some comfort from it. But those kids still made her nervous, for fear of being held to their standard, if nothing else.

00000

"Mercedes, do you have a few minutes?"

She paused, one hand on the door, turning back to see who had called her. She found Aria gliding across the dining hall, one hand raised in greeting. "I was going to head over to the library, sensei," Mercedes said, "to get started on the homework."

"That can wait, at least a little bit," the familiar said, opening the door for her. "Yussef came down somewhat hard on you yesterday, and I wanted to show something to clarify why."

Mercedes was unsure what to make of that comment, but decided it must be some sort of apology. "Shouldn't he be the one 'clarifying', then?"

Aria shook her head. "No, because he did nothing wrong, as he explained yesterday. But I wanted to show you, in part, why he responded as he did, why Luke did."

Mercedes felt a spike of annoyance, and could not help grimacing at that. "Yeah, everyone's made a real big point of explaining that," she said. "It was one mistake, okay? I already apologized to Laura for it..."

"Which is probably why your hair is still black," Aria said. A gesture from her altered their course when they reached the end of the dorm, towards the classroom building. "Laura's favorite prank, though far from the only one in her arsenal, is to turn her victim's hair strange and visually painful colors."

"Allison warned me about that," Mercedes admitted, contemplating the other girl's dire warnings. The hair did not seem so bad, but some of the other incidents Allison had related would have been frighteningly embarrassing.

"There's no avoiding her pranks," Aria warned, "but apologizing probably mitigated the damage she'll do. Laura is fair, if nothing else, and if you find a way to prank her back, she'll take her medicine. Would you mind flying? The best observation point is from the roof."

Mercedes was more eager to learn how to do it herself than to be carted about, but nodded her head. A moment later, she caught her breath as something lifted her off the ground, then she and her teacher were airborne. They approached the roof of the class building as fast as she could run. Aria took them up and over in a short arc, then weight returned, and Aria resumed walking.

To Mercedes' surprise, they were not the only ones on the roof. The twins were at the far corner, crouched behind the low wall. "Hey, you two," she called as they approached, "what are you guys up here for?"

"Probably the same thing we are," Aria said, as the twins flinched and dropped completely behind the wall.

They turned to look, and relaxed almost immediately. One of them gave her a strange look Mercedes could not identify, before the other replied, "We were observing Sims-san. She spoke to us earlier this afternoon, and we were curious."

Mercedes grimaced again, "Laura? We're here to watch Laura?"

"Yes, but in a specific setting," Aria said. The cat-woman stepped right up to the ledge, and gestured below.

Mercedes moved to stand next to her as the twins straightened again, and looked down. Below and somewhat behind the classroom building was a cleared circle of dirt, surrounded by concrete pillars. Off to one side, near the path leading up to the teachers' house, Mercedes saw Signum standing with her arms folded, her device planted tip-first in the ground at her feet. Inside the circle was a substantial crowd of figures, over a dozen, most of them purplish un-detailed human shapes.

The one that was not indistinct was Laura. She was whirling, ducking, twisting, weaving, punching and kicking as the surrounding figures attacked her. As Mercedes watched, she seemed to be dancing around the figures, untouchable as she tossed her opponents about with apparent ease. Mercedes knew a little self defense, had taken some courses until she grew bored with it, and it was painfully obvious Laura was pulling maneuvers she did not think were humanly possible.

Then she got one good strike, spinning to her left in a reverse round-house as one of her opponents lunged at her back. The blow went in under its arm, slamming its side hard enough to launch it sideways. Before it went a meter, it flashed red, a shrill alarm sounded loud enough to be heard on the roof, and all the figures vanished. Laura recovered from the kick, then visibly slumped, and started walking over to Signum.

"That is the second time she has stopped at one good hit," one of the twins remarked.

"Not even to very dangerous places," the other said.

Mercedes glanced at them to find them staring past her at Aria, and turned to look at the teacher as well.

Aria sighed softly, "Last year, Signum trained Laura in martial arts, with an emphasis on weapons. She originally intended it merely as a method to try and burn off the girl's excess energies, but Laura soaked up Signum's teachings like a sponge, better in some ways than she learned magic. You have all heard of what generally happened in February. In Laura's case, she put both her magic and her martial arts to necessary, but unfortunate, use. She killed the man most responsible for the attack. It was a very difficult experience for her, and at the end of the year, she swore never to kill again. So now, Signum trains her to rein in her strikes, to moderate her attacks. The simulations allow Signum to more accurately judge the force of Laura's blows. Admittedly, she has the settings of what constitutes 'lethal' set rather broadly, but still within plausible limits. That last kick, for instance, would have broken ribs, and could easily have collapsed a lung, had she put enough force behind it. There would even be a small chance of driving bone fragments into the heart, or generating sufficient shock to stop the heart outright. Small chances, but Signum takes _no _chances with her apprentice now."

_Damn,_ Mercedes thought, _that little bi... punk is that dangerous?_ "How likely is she to keep her oath?"

Aria flicked an ear at her, "you need not fear her doing you harm, Mercedes. What I wanted to show you was not how dangerous she can be. The mere fact of her presence here should be proof enough of that, as it is proof of how dangerous you can be. I actually intended quite the opposite, to show you that her control is that good. Also, to demonstrate just how hard she works. What you are seeing is not part of the school curriculum, it has no effect on Laura's grade. It is merely Signum's personal training.

"Laura was up this morning at five, to run Signum's obstacle course through the woods behind here a few times. Then to shower, breakfast with the rest of you, then her full day of classes, where Paradox earned her more work, demonstrating for my sister's class how a device functions, then to her room long enough to change and come back out here. She'll be here until dinner, then do her studying after dinner. This is her routine at least two days a week, sometimes three, and she usually spends Sunday training with Signum, or working on her own.

"In their own ways, Noriko and Yussef are almost as bad. Those two spend more of their time working with others, but they still put in far more work than teenagers should. Yet for them, it is that extra effort that makes being here worthwhile, that extra workload that makes this school so much fun and such a good place to learn. This here, Mercedes, as much as the reasons for this specific lesson, is why the others are so respectful and protective of Laura, Noriko and Yussef. Niranjana may have scored higher than them, but those three are quite definitely the leaders at this school."

Mercedes mulled that over in her mind for a few minutes, watching as Laura returned to the center of the circle, and another dozen figures appeared. Everything Aria had said made sense, and with the sparring match going on below, she could not deny how brutal that schedule sounded, but two questions occurred to her. "How does she have time for pranks, then? And what about Cidela, why's everyone so protective of her?"

"Because she was one of the ones kidnapped last year," one of the twins muttered.

The other twin followed it up with "_obviously_."

"Iie," Aria said, before Mercedes could form a response. "She prefers Cid-chan, by the way, and we prefer it if you called her that, rather than her full name. As for why we all treat her the way we do... her situation was not as immediate or extreme as Laura's, and has mostly resolved itself, but she was one of only two orphans at the school last year, and Mariachi has always been one. Also, spend a little time with her. Cid-chan is very calming, but at the same time she is painfully shy. You'll see by the end of the year that most of your classmates will react similarly to, if my analysis is accurate, Didier, and possibly you two, Saeryn and Rhys.

"As for Laura's pranks..." Here Aria smiled, and finally looked away from the combat as another figure flashed red, "... my theory is that Laura gets bored extremely easily. She has, in many ways, the most intelligent mind on the campus. But she is _too _intelligent, she understands things _too _easily, and thus gets bored easily. So her mind wanders, frequently, and she spends a lot of time thinking about things other than what is right in front of her. That is part of what so annoys Yussef, her habit of pulling a non sequitur in the middle of even the most serious conversation. She's not an 'air head', she's just not paying attention. Because of how often and widely her mind wanders, she can be sitting in class taking notes, but thinking up plans to execute her next prank. I went back over some of the security tapes, over the summer, and matched a few of her 'random outbursts' to later pranks or spells."

Aria paused, and actually giggled, a soft little sound, "The best was when she shouted 'Schroedinger's cat!' in the middle of one of Vita-chan's lectures. It turned out to be her most powerful spell." The small smile vanished, to be replaced with a more pensive look and an insulted tone, "it should not be, though. The blasted thing should not even work." A shrug, "But that is Laura. Does this help clarify yesterday, for you? Both why they came down on you so hard, and why Laura did not walk away unscathed herself?"

The logic was convoluted, and Mercedes was uncertain she believed half of what Aria had told her, but she nodded anyhow. "Yeah, it does. I'll keep it in mind." She grimaced and shook her head, "all this over one accident."

"All this over a potentially serious altercation," Aria countered. "Keep in mind, this is new to us, as well, having to integrate two classes. The fact that you are older than some of the second years does not help, nor does the mix of backgrounds. You and Laura having a standing dislike is one thing, but yesterday, especially with Yussef's intervention, could very easily lead to a simmering feud. We would prefer to avoid that, and the best way to manage that is understanding. I assure you, Laura has already gotten her own talking to.

"It is not all bad news. We have a class trip to Kyoto planned in a month, a chance to see places we missed last year. The current plan is to divide all of you into groups irrespective of year, so you should have a chance to see that Yussef's protectiveness, all of their protectiveness, is not limited to each other. By the time the third years arrive, you will no doubt come in for your share of such overbearing watchfulness, and distribute some of your own."

Mercedes just shook her head. Perspective was all well and good, and the second years' intimidating presence was already being moderated, though she was positive that was both deliberate and temporary in Noriko's case. Watching Laura's training, hearing about her schedule, and realizing just what standard she now had to live up to promptly undid all of that. "Man, I'm almost sorry I came here," she said, "but at least it won't be boring."

00000

Yuuno watched the circle work with focused intensity, completely oblivious to the early afternoon heat of the desert. He was sitting off to one side while they worked, just observing, notepad forgotten in his fascinated observation. The flows of energy the twelve men and women were shaping were delicate things, little slivers of power, weaving together to form a complex latticework of a spell, one that hovered just at the edge of a massive expanse of utter nothingness.

He had seen this exact scene four times already, and knew it was being repeated at three more places spaced around the massive null-space in south-western Egypt, yet he was still deeply impressed. He had come to Earth expecting to find a group of half-trained superstitious warmongers attempting to contain something they could not even describe, let alone comprehend. Instead, the Circles were proving to be deeply knowledgeable, if in surprisingly limited and paranoid ways, and to have at least one flat out impossible skill, which they were proving again as he watched. Before his very eyes, they were oh so slowly shrinking the null-space created to trap Hayate. If they managed to maintain this pace, he calculated they could seal it in just under a year. According to them, they would have it sealed within six months, the work accelerating as the null-space shrank.

He watched in still silence for nearly an hour, before a gentle touch on his shoulder distracted him. He had to shake his head and rub his eyes a few times to get them to re-focus, then looked up to find Tai-yu crouched next to him. "Ah, good evening, Tai-yu-san."

"Good evening, Takamichi-san," she gave a slight bow of her head. "My apologies for interrupting, but I was a little concerned. You have not moved in quite some time."

He grinned a little sheepishly, "Ah, sorry about that. Watching the impossible tends to do that to me."

"From the stories I have heard of your wife, I would think you would be used to the impossible," Tai-yu replied, making both of them chuckle.

"It's different, with Nanoha. I'm used to her doing the impossible, it's somewhat expected. But this," he shook his head slowly, "this is incredible! I did some quick research before I came out here, and there is _no record _of anyone ever managing to repair or even just seal a null-space. There are a couple old theories, one even comes close to what I think you people are doing here, but no one's ever actually done it. There are null-spaces that we can trace all the way back to Al Hazred, still sitting there, consuming anything that falls into them. If we can convince you to teach us how you do it, how you repair other dislocations, or even just hire a few circles to do the work themselves... the possibilities are vast!" He would have continued, but caught Tai-yu grinning at him, quite obviously amused about something. "What?"

"Vita-san told me some amusing stories about you. I'm glad she wasn't lying." She paused, rising to her feet, "but I do actually have a business reason for interrupting you. Master Adept Sauvageau is ready to speak to you. He's in charge of this operation, the ranking member of the Modern's Containment division, so far as I know."

Yuuno shoved himself up with a grunt, waving for the shorter woman to lead the way. "It's about time! I've been waiting two days to talk to him. Just watching has taught me a lot, but we need an agreement to do anything serious."

As they walked from the working tent across the desert sands to where more permanent housing – in the form of air-conditioned trailers and mobile generators – had been anchored, he noticed something that uncomfortably reminded him of the delicate nature of the situation. There were quite a few Circle mages about, beyond those in the working circle. Most of them, he knew, would be taking turns in that circle, keeping the complicated spell going continuously until it was time to move the working, which happened every few days from what he had learned so far. A few more were on security, and more were simply there, for no reason he had been able to discern. What caught his eye was that those who were outside watched as Tai-yu led him towards the trailers, and it was soon apparent that they were not watching him, but her, and their looks were anything but friendly. The guards were the worst, several of them patently watching her instead of watching outwards.

"Tai-yu-san, is there..."

She interrupted by shaking her head, "Do not concern yourself, Takamichi-san. By Circle standards, I am a traitor, due to my cooperation with the Bureau. They will not harm me, out of fear of Hayate-sama, but they also will not trust me again."

He stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I know how hard it was for you to cooperate, but it was the right thing to do."

Tai-yu shrugged. "I'm aware, but thank you. It's part of my sentence, I think, forcing me to deal with my former comrades. At least none of them will come near the campus, so I can relax there. But... here we are." She opened the door to the trailer, and preceded him inside.

Master Adept Sauvageau proved to be a ruggedly built older man, enthroned behind a desk with subordinates waiting at the wings. The dark suit and tie had to be uncomfortable, even with the trailer's whining air-conditioning, but he showed no sign of it, merely watched Yuuno and Tai-yu approach with narrowed eyes.

"Yuuno Takamichi," he said in English, "I must admit, I find your appearance frighteningly unsurprising. A bookworm I expected, and a bookworm stands before me."

That was annoying, but only a little. Yuuno had long since gotten over being called a bookworm, but the fact that this meeting was starting with an insult, however wide of the mark, meant it was going to be difficult. He had hoped for better. "You have me at an advantage then, Mister Sauvageau," Yuuno said, moving to sit without being invited, making himself comfortable. _If he wants to play the insult game, I'll play._ "I had no real mental image of you. I'm afraid I've been rather busy these last few weeks. Managing the Infinity Library would be a full-time job for any three people, but the Bureau's rather short-handed on the administrative side right now."

Sauvageau's eyes narrowed further. "A common problem in all bureaucracies, even one as decentralized as ours used to be. So let us be brief, hmm? Your thugs have made it abundantly clear that you regard this world as being Bureau property, as a place where you have free reign."

"That is incorrect, Mister Sauvageau, as you well know," Yuuno interrupted. "Our Armed Enforcers have secured this site, yes, because it remains dangerous and to our knowledge no one on this world had the knowledge and experience to approach or study it safely. Your teams outside have convinced the Operations personnel responsible for this sector that you do know what you are doing, and the demonstration outside has convinced me of the same. The rest of the world is not our concern. It is Hayate Yagami's concern, and she is the only authority the Bureau recognizes here on Earth, but given the excessive lengths your fellows went to in order to eliminate her, you can't really blame us for that, now can you?"

"Yes, I can. The woman represented a clear and demonstrable threat the stability of our world, a threat that was fully realized in February. More Circle members have died to violence since her arrival than in the preceding century, Mister Takamichi. On top of that, we never invited her or you to this world."

"But your actions met the Bureau Charter's threshold for uninvited intervention. The Bureau does not involve itself in the local affairs of member worlds, or in any affairs of non-member worlds, without invitation. But we must and will intervene to prevent and contain any detectable dimensional dislocations. Not out of aggrandizement or self-importance, but because we exist to safe-guard the entire universe against a repeat of the terrible devastation that followed Al Hazred's fall, a cataclysm millennia old that left terrible scars across all of creation, many of which remain to this day. We cannot fulfill that mission if we ignore catastrophes such as last February's. I understand your objection, but the Bureau learned long ago that it is in everyone's best interests to act first, ensure the scene's security, and apologize later."

"Yet I have still not heard any apology from any of you."

"Nor will you, in this case." Yuuno shrugged, "this situation is of your making. You created the engines that created this null, thus requiring our intervention. It was only Hayate's intervention which prevented the Bureau from moving in, in force, and seizing every member of the Circles." _As well as your ridiculous numbers,_ Yuuno's conscience insisted on reminding him. That aspect of the Circles was still stumping Bureau planners. "Because of that intervention, and the current stalemate, we have an opportunity I had hoped to discuss with you, one that would benefit both of our organizations, and countless billions of people the universe over."

"So I was told when your request for a meeting was first forwarded to us from Hughes." Sauvageau finally relaxed, face loosing its set glare. "I understand you want to exchange knowledge, techniques, information. What makes you think we would be interested? The Circles exist to contain and eliminate any attempt to artificially create and control magic. Even what was done here was proscribed, by most interpretations of our laws. Acceptable in the face of the threat it was aimed at, but still proscribed."

Yuuno actually chuckled at that. "Do you think everything we do is done through a device?" He spread his hands, turning them inwards to indicate himself. "I have not had a device in over a decade, yet I am considered one of the most accomplished mages of my generation. I routinely teach courses at the Bureau's Officers Academy on advanced principles, and conduct research into old and new magics. My skills with bindings and data retrieval magics are some of the best in Bureau. All without any device or artificial enhancement. Oh, I can and have used such things in the past, but most of what I use magic for these days does not require the power a device makes available. That is part of what we offer.

"The other part is reassurance, through history. We would make available to your people our histories, our records. Nothing classified, of course, but the public sections should be quite sufficient to reassure you, both to our goals and intentions, and to the safety of our magic, even our artificial enhancements. We won't try and tell you to take up our ways, but we can convince you that we are not a threat. At the same time, you can convince us that you are not a threat. Mutual understanding leading to mutual co-existence. There are any number of worlds that are both fully aware of the Bureau's existence, and non-signatory worlds. They are fully aware of our charter and methods, yet do not fear to be invaded or dictated to, precisely because they are aware. At the same time, we are aware of their ways and views, and do not worry that they will cause the sort of problems our organization exists to prevent. We have similar information exchange arrangements with most of those worlds, for this very reason."

Sauvageau leaned back and thought that over for a few minutes, speculative gaze floating from Yuuno to Tai-yu and back again. Finally he leaned forward, planting his elbows on the desk. "Interesting in theory, and the high ideals make for lovely PR, but let's hear what the details are, shall we?"

00000

Ichigo was a little nervous knocking on the door, but more because of where he was than who he was here to see. While he was more relaxed about it than Yussef, all the guys shared their leader's discomfort at being in the Girls' Wing, mostly just because it _was _the Girls' Wing. But Natalia had been hiding since the new kids arrived, and he wanted to make sure he was right about why.

When she did not answer his first knock, he knocked again, calling out, "Come on, Talia-chan, I'm not going away any time soon. Lights out isn't for a couple hours yet."

The door wrenched open to reveal a glaring Natalia. "You're not Laura, Ichigo. You suck at coming up with nicknames. What do you want? I'm trying to study."

He glanced past her, and quirked an eye at the book on the table. "You playing hermit again? It's only the first day of classes, and you're already hiding?"

She glared a little harder, "I'm not hiding, I just..."

"The new kids think you're scared of them," He laughed, but her glare faded to a guarded glance towards the common room. "Don't tell me you are?"

"I just..." she grimaced and shrugged, turning back into her room, "I just don't like seeing them."

That statement neatly cut off any thoughts he had of getting her to laugh. "Still can't turn it off, huh?" Natalia just shook her head as she sat back down at her desk. Ichigo followed her in, and closed the door behind him. "I thought of something over the summer," he told her, getting her to look up again, "but I'm not sure if it'll work. Can you see through walls?"

"Wha...? Walls? No, nitwit, I don't have x-ray vision."

Ichigo shrugged off the insult, "what about your eyelids? Do you still see things with your eyes closed?"

She looked thoughtful again, "No."

Ichigo fished in his pocket, and pulled out a small cloth square, holding it out to her, "try this, then."

She stared at his hand for a second, then her eyes went wide and she lunged for his hand. She fumbled for a second and almost dropped the eye-patch, then slapped it over her left eye, pulled the four strings tight behind her head, and stared at him for a moment. Her eye went a little wider, then she did the last thing he expected, and tackled him. They bounced off the door before he realized she was sobbing 'thank you' in Hazred.

"Hey, no big," he told her, patting her back a little uncomfortably, "Partly my fault you've got that eye, after all."

Natalia shook her head against his chest, "No, it was mine. But I don't have to _see_ anymore! Why didn't _I_ think of this?!"

"Far be it from me to suggest that you're too stubborn and proud to ask for help, or admit you can't handle things... Talia-chan." She kneed him in the thigh for that, but he just chuckled. "I figured, since you see things, and don't 'just know' like Laura does, it had to be tied to vision, the physical process of sight. It was worth a shot, at least, though... I would suggest seeing if Hayate-sensei can get you something a little more stylish."

"This'll be fine," She said, "anything's better than seeing all the time. I almost tried to take it out, over the summer, almost. I saw... saw..." She hesitated, then whispered, "My grandmother's going to die before Christmas next year, Ichigo. She won't even see my third year start."

"Kami-sama," he muttered, "I'm so sorry, Natalia. Is there anything..."

"No, nothing," Natalia interrupted. "It's not even really a surprise. She's seventy, she's hardly had the easiest life. When I told her, she just smiled. Said it would be nice to finally rest, get some peace and quiet away from 'the rowdy kids'. She's started going to church every day, started calling old friends, family who're out of the city. She's saying goodbye. I gave her the chance to say goodbye, but..."

"But you're still going to loose her."

"I'll still be alone."

He pushed her back a little at that, just enough to glare at her, "Oi, what're we then?"

She sighed, then gave him a sad little smile, "You know that's not what I meant, Ichigo. You're all my friends, but she's family. I've got a couple cousins, an uncle in the Ukraine somewhere, but... they aren't _family_. No one can replace family, Ichigo."

"Replace, no," He agreed, "but look at Cid-chan. You won't be alone, Natalia, unless you insist on playing the hermit."

She studied his face for a couple seconds, then stepped back, crossed her arms, and demanded, "Okay, who's feeding you lines?"

He grimaced at that, and shook his head. "No one is 'feeding me lines'. Though I will admit Noriko and Shamal-sensei put me up to this, and gave me some advice on what to say. They figured, since you and I got along so well last year, you'd take it better from me. Also, I had to give you that eye-patch, which you're still not actually _wearing_."

She did not laugh, but did smile at that. "You're hopeless, Ichigo." She settled the patch over her left eye again, then struggled with the ties for a minute. "How's that?"  
"Lopsided," he admitted. "looks a little low on the outside." Natalia fixed, fiddling with the ties again to make sure it stayed. "Perfect. Good enough, at least. Come on, let's go see if it works against multiple targets."

Natlaia shook her head, "Thank you, Ichigo, but no. I really was studying, and no, nothing illicit. I didn't do as much over the summer as I should have, and need to do some catch up."

"You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Well, crap," he muttered, fishing his PDA from where he had stashed it under his belt in back, "I guess I'll just have to study as well, won't I?"

"You're not going to leave, are you?"

He shrugged, a little embarrassed. "Sorry, orders. I can either drag you out to the dining hall, or sit in here and try not to be 'dead last' again this year."

"All right," Natalia allowed, "how does Arabic sound?"

"Boring. Languages are easy."

"Then you can help me figure it out," Natalia commented, sitting at her desk again, "all these letters look like someone just flicked a brush at the paper, or something."

00000

Per multiple requests – here's a list of First Years and Second Years. If I've got it, the meaning of the name is also listed, though not always relevant (if there are multiple meanings, only the most meaningful is listed). Format is: Given Name Surname - Nation of origin. Meaning of Name. Relevant Notes.

First Years (Alpha by surname)

Hector, El Mariachi – Mexico. Trojan hero. No family name because he is an orphan. 'Mariachi' is a type of Mexican music that Hector can play, but he lacks the band members to really meet. 'El Mariachi' is also how the character of the movie _Desperado_ was always referred to, and Hector is partially based on him.

Yussef bin Hammad Al Khan – Qatar. Yussef is the Arabic version of Joseph. 'bin Hammad' means 'son of Hammad', and Al Khan is the actual family name. 'bin Hammad' both is and is not treated like western middle names, used more frequently, but still somewhat formal.

Noriko Asegawa – Japan. Child of ceremony, law, order. The Japanese Imperial family does not actually have a surname. I understand there is a 'place-holder' they use when absolutely necessary, but could not locate it, so I made up 'Asegawa' as a sort of publicity cover in case of media attention.

Allison Caeghlin – United States, Navajo Reservation. Variant of 'Alice', just a pretty name.

Luke Henderson – Australia. Derived from Greek word for 'from Lucania'.

Niranjana Konoth – India, New Delhi. 'She who stays unattached' – chosen more because I thought it a pretty name.

Marcel Lafitte – France. From Roman name 'Marcellus', derived from 'Mars'

Allina Maricopa – Brazil. Precious.

Ichigo McClure – Japan. First born son.

Natalia Morisovich – Russia, Moscow. Derived from 'Natalie', which meant 'Christmas Day'.

Noah San Cristobal – Philippines. Biblical reference.

Toushiro Senizawa – Japan. Intelligent & Wise.

Cidela ni Shamal – Egypt, now Japan. Named for a girl I knew in Bahrain who is her visual basis.

Laura Sims – United States, Rhode Island. Short form of 'Laurel'.

Megan Sommersby – England. Short form of 'Margaret', from a Greek word for 'pearl'.

Juliet Van Saar – South Africa. Greatly derived from 'Jupiter'.

Second Years (Alpha by surname)

Didier Akalé – le Cote d'Ivoire. Derived from Latin term for 'longing, desire'.

Mercedes Garibaldi – Italy. Spanish for 'mercy'.

Esmeralda Lecuona – Spain. Emerald.

Chen-chi Mao – Taiwan. Brilliant dawn.

Rhys Marterosian – United States, Georgia. Enthusiasm (a boy's name, used deliberately here).

Saeryn Marterosian – United States, Georgia. I found a meaning, but can't find the name anymore...

Kaemon Matsuo – Japan, Osaka. 'Joyful' – a traditional samurai name.

Verner Metzger – Germany, Nuremberg. Derived from two words for 'guard' and 'army'.

Ekavir Naruka – India. 'Bravest of the Brave', fitting for a Rajput.

Jun Xie – China, Beijing. Truth (turns out it's a girl's name? Found 'Jun' listed as a boy's name originally on the 'State Approved List' of baby names, but now I can't find the list...)

On an amusing note, while re-checking the names, I Googled 'Cidela', and chapters of Academy Blues. Talk about self-reference...

00000

Seaotter: Shamal won't be in 'mother mode' very often, but she'll probably be very bad when she is, given that she's never done it before (Hayate mothered the Knights more than they her, in my opinion). Yussef is more mature, due to the attack and talking with his father. I will admit to having some personal issues with the Middle East, mostly because of personal experiences there, but it's one of my 'self-challenges' – keeping as honest a presentation as a non-expert can. Laura is mostly back to her old self, though she'll never take battle as lightly as she used to. Noriko has essentially recovered from her injuries, her 'favoring her right' is more lifetime habit than residual injury, and the Circles always have plans, it's why they're still around. I was debating the Myrmidons until the plot for this story started coming together, and I developed a use for them as a team. Yussef's not happy about it, but more on his reactions and opinions on the matter will be coming up. I was originally going to have Laura get on their cases about it, but realized that she's too much a warrior to make light of what the Myrmidons are meant to be. The twins have their own oddities and story, they'll probably be the most used characters in the new year. Mercedes also has her own issues & role, as shown above – I was worried she might come across as too much of a spoiled brat – which she is, but only to a limited extent. The Circles' team is currently aimed at the Revenants, but as Schuster commented, they plan to finish Li's work. There' a list of students above for you, but as for length... my incomplete outline projected 60 chapters, but I've no idea if I'll fall short or exceed that. Like I said, the outline's incomplete. Sorry!

pfeil: I'm glad you're liking the new kids, and the meetings are the major point of these chapters. Here's the first reaction to Cidela, and there's only one 'i' in Rafiq.

Tsukino Kage Spectre: I am more than happy to admit that the creators of the Gundam Wing movie made use of a common euphemism (though I have, naturally, seen the GW movie). 'Endless Waltz' has been used by historians, philosophers, and authors for years (that I know of) as a euphemism for both 'war' and 'history'. I first ran into the term back in the early nineties, though I don't remember where. Both the title here, the title of the Gundam Wing movie, and the quote from chapter 00 reference the sad fact that there has always been a war going on somewhere in the world, for all recorded history.

AceStarleaf: Nope, the Circles aren't done yet. Probably the only way Hayate could really guarantee the Circles would leave her alone, without spending a couple centuries re-working their training and mythos, would be to kill the lot of them. Even as bad as they are, that's too extreme for her. I'm glad Megan's intro worked as intended, at least once:).

Auroua: I'm glad you enjoyed the prior stories, hope this one lives up to them. As far as the new kids, I'm trying to keep them from being too similar to their predecessors, so there won't necessarily be a 'Laura 2.0' running around. I've no comment on the Deva magic, save the teaser that one of my characters will get to play with it eventually... but I'm not saying who!

TheWhiteMonk: I'll do my utmost not to disappoint with the new kids, but can't make any promises – I've honestly never dealt with this many simultaneous characters at once, it's one of the challenges I've set for myself here. The focus will stay on the 'good guys', especially these first few chapters, but plot will require input from the various and sundry evil forces... but preference noted. As for Honor Harrington... I still have a copy of the first print run of On Basilisk Station, from when it was brand-spankin' new, as well as a 'back up copy', so I don't have to worry about the original falling apart, given how often I re-read them. While I haven't read all of Weber's books, I have read most of them, and he has remained my all-time favorite author since I picked up the first Honor book.

CrimsonDX: You like the twins? They're supposed to be creepy and weird, dammit. Ah, well, they are developed, at least. Mercedes has her own issues, and I'm fairly certain people will either end up loving or hating her before long (possibly both).

Eternal Longing: Thanks for the compliment. The Myrmidons were a debatable point, honestly right up until I wrote that scene. The grades thing is mostly just a repeat-joke, from Academy Blues right after winter break (they had roughly the same spread then). While I have a few plot-lines thought out, the only fully detailed background I came up with was for the new kids, but I'm going to try and avoid repeating any characters. Chen-chi'll have some similarities to Laura, but only a couple. As for the twins skipping dinner, they didn't – they were there, just off on their own being reclusive.

Natimus Prime: Know what you mean about the 'new chapter' e-mails. Now if only my favorites would hurry up and post more often...:). There's a list of students above, divided by class, which should hopefully keep things from getting too confusing. I'm horrible with names myself (way back in Path of Vengeance, I had to keep typing 'Hinata' when I meant 'Hayate', for instance). I really was trying to put quotes at the end of each chapter as a back-reference, but by chapter 04 I was revealing too much information about what was yet to come. A few of the better ones may sneak in there, once the bits they spoiled show up, but nothing regular, I'm afraid.

SpaceBrotha: I'm afraid I've no comment on what Yussef's eventual fate will be, but I can say he's not Achilles (Yussef's not nearly enough of a spoiled brat). Laura's response to the Myrmidons is a bit of a twist, but as I told Seaotter, she's too much a warrior to make light of someone else's warrior tradition (unless she's fighting them at the time...). Hughes has his plans, as do the Revenants, and all those plans do, eventually, involve Bad Things for the school, it's just a question of which gets into position to move first, given that they're rather focused on each other at the moment. Shiraz's decision to send his girls to Hayate was pretty much explained by him, and while it is strange, he is sending them to someone he can be fairly certain will give them back – basically, he's thinking more as a father than as a Circle mage. I don't get all this hostility towards Mercedes' name, though... I always liked it. One of my first favorite authors was Mercedes Lackey (though I don't know her personally, so maybe...?). As far as the names, they're listed above. Chen-chi (there is a hyphen there!) and Jun both use the Asian convention, because they _are _Asian. I'm sorry it's confusing, but it's a reminder to myself of how they think, as much as anything. Laura calls Megan 'Tigger' specifically because of the 'Winnie the Pooh' reference, and directly in relation to Megan's liger form – it's cute, it's fluffy, and demonstrates Laura's absolute fearlessness for all to see, while also annoying Megan no end. Noriko's explanation wasn't supposed to be boasting, though it could be taken that way, she really was just trying to settle the new kids' fears. As for the Black Dogs, you're the first to mention that, though keep in mind, that section references a few things that have not necessarily happened yet. Thanks for the reminder about Natalia – the above scene was supposed to be in last chapter, but I flaked on writing it out. As for Tai-yu, what she teaches hasn't come up yet, and her position's somewhat tenuous at the school – she's only been on-campus a couple days longer than the new kids, and the second years are all busy catching up on their summers and the new kids (what's more interesting, a new 'teacher' not in your class list, or new fellows living just down the hall?). As for 'The Reborn', 'Mad Maudlin' and the rest, I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see, though I will admit to finding the guessing games amusing.

Kell Shock: thanks for the two reviews, I'll reply to both here. First up, thanks for the corrections, I've fixed them on my copies and hopefully I'll actually remember to upload them with this chapter. You're also right about Nanoha's rank - author mistake, my apologies. For simplicity's sake, I'll argue she was promoted over the summer – it has been six months since the major events of Academy Blues, she's supposed to be one of the best the Bureau's ever seen, and I've no idea how long she was a Captain. The references in the opening section of Chapter 00 will be referenced again, though probably not for a while. I don't think I'll give Tai-yu a device, as I don't think it will fit with the role I'm planning for her. As far as America and Japan surrendering, I can't answer directly until many chapters in the future, but I will ask my own questions for you to think on – were they the only nations to surrender, or even the first? What condition were they in when they surrendered? What were the conditions of their surrender (unconditional, or retaining some sort of local authority/autonomy)? I think, given the eventual answers to those questions and a few more, you won't be disappointed. The new kids will settle in to their new surroundings, but no meeting of two new groups is ever really smooth, there are always issues. I admit the grade range is narrow, but keep in mind they're not only very bright, but were in all the same classes, and shared notes & study time liberally, so they would be very close. Also, it gave an easily-mis-interpreted lesson to the new kids about how 'it's not that hard' (which most of them mis-interpreted). I think that the story of how Laura got the 'Black Mage' moniker will, like Lotte's reference to tying her to Yussef one class, remain a 'Noodle Incident' – referenced, but never explained. Lastly, as I said to SpaceBrotha, the aliases not already revealed are supposed to be knowable, but not obvious, so please keep guessing. You may be right, you may be wrong, but I'm liking the guesses so far:).


	4. 03 Lessons Learned

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-03 – Lessons Learned-

"Right, today's the day," Laura said.

"But it is Sunday," Saeryn protested, "no classes."

"She's still out and about, walking around. All you have to do is slip something identifiably hers out of her bag when she's not looking. I thought you two had a distraction all planned out?"

"We did," Rhys grumbled, "but it won't work on a Sunday. No classes, everyone's going to be spread out all over the place, not clustered in classrooms."

"So you improvise," Laura said unsympathetically.

Rhys glared at her for that. "Why do you need _us _for this?"

"Because everyone's suspicious of me," Laura said, before turning a wide-eyed pout on the twins, "I can't for the life of me understand why no one trusts innocent cute little innocent me, but they're just so suspicious and mistrustful whenever I'm around. It hurts."

"You are actually tearing up," Saeryn commented flatly, "you should go into acting, you could be a soap-opera star."

Laura laughed, lashing out a lighting-fast hand to ruffle the girl's hair. "You're cute when you're trying to be insulting, you know that?"

Saeryn pushed her hand away with difficulty, and turned away to fix her hair back into the straight fall the twins preferred. "We won't be able to proceed until lunch time, at best," Saeryn said. "We will need the press of people to distract her."

"Good enough. You should be able to give our little present back to her at dinner, then."

00000

Yussef watched as Zafira closed the door behind Didier, then swept his gaze over the ten students gathered in the main workroom with him. They all shared a general look of confusion and disgruntlement, which he could understand, it being Sunday morning and all. But his sympathy for them was strictly limited by his appreciation of just how important the next two hours would be, and he strode to the front of the group with a loud driving step.

"Good morning everyone," he said, focusing their attention fully on him, "and welcome to Small Unit Tactics One-Oh-One." He stopped a few meters short, hands clasped in the small of his back, and smiled ever so slightly. "I will be your teacher, despite Zafira-sensei's presence."

They all blinked at him stupidly for a second, before Mercedes blurted out, "Come again? _You're _a teacher?"

"In this course, yes," Yussef answered. "When it became clear last year that the school was under some sort of threat, I put together a training program to make sure my friends and I could watch each other's backs if trouble happened. It turned out to be a good thing I did, though I freely admit to having made some mistakes. Last year, I excluded some people I shouldn't have, focused on the magic more than I should have, and at the same time failed to allow for the flexibility magic allows. This year, with the assistance of Zafira-sensei and Vita-sensei, I've corrected those mistakes, and improved the course all around, for your benefit.

"I am not, despite the popular myth about how magical combat works, going to teach you martial arts. I am no martial artist, though Signum-sensei has been teaching me the sword. What I am going to teach you is how to think under pressure, how to keep your head about you when buster spells are flying, and how to keep aware of your surroundings and thus able to respond to any dangers that occur. The lessons I will be relating to you are the same lessons that let us second years escape the campus last February, and the same lessons that made New Delhi a snap. The same lessons that soldiers have studied since the time of Mohammad, since Alexander conquered the world, since men first picked up a weapon to hunt.

"With only a very little luck, none of you will ever apply what I teach you here, outside of this class and maybe a board-room. If you do end up in a situation where these skills apply, they will be the only thing that can save you. All the magic in the world won't help, if you can't keep your head about you well enough to use it."

He paused, turning to face the chaotic jumble of shields that turned most of the workroom into terrain. Zafira had finally shown him how to activate the shields and how to program them, and this was the first time anyone else had seen his efforts. It looked properly difficult, but he thought it would not be too difficult for the new kids, in and of itself. "What you see before you is a maze," he said, "though not a traditional one. There is no 'one safe path', there are several. At the far end of the workroom is the safe-zone. To reach it, you will have to slip past my opposition in the maze. If any of your reaches it, I will give all of you passing grades for this course for the year."

"Which means none of us will make it," Kaemon muttered, just audible.

"Five to one none of us make it half way," Chen-chi said, then held out a hand, "any takers?"

Yussef grinned, turning to face Kaemon, and shrugged. "It is theoretically possible that one of you could make it. To do so, however, all of you will have to already know what this class teaches. Before any of you whine about me having a device, however," he removed Zulfiqar's dormant form from his wrist, and tossed it under-hand to Zafira, who caught it with a shake of his head, "Zafira-sensei will hold onto that for me, until this test is over. I'm going in now. Five minutes after I do, by Zafira-sensei's count, all of you go in at the same time. Use any entrance, any path, any methods you like. If you can make it past the maze, you make it past this class. Five minutes."

He turned and trotted into the maze, feeling the sensors register his presence, and trigger the shifting program. Ever so slowly, inside the maze and out of sight of the first years, the shields began to rearrange themselves in a pattern as near to random as any computer could manage. Yussef paid the changes little mind, working his way deeper into the maze. Just before he reached the center, he nodded to Luke and Ichigo, setting up their ambush point, and grinned at the thought of the first-years' probable reaction to the contents of the maze.

Ten minutes later, he was still waiting, and growing a little concerned. "Allison, Juliet, anything on your end?"

The two girls were watching over the safe-zone, a last line of defense in case any of the new kids really was good enough to make it that far. But if one of them managed that trick, even if they did not reach the actual safe-zone, it would seriously blunt the lesson. Allison answered for both of them, "Nah, not a peep. What's the hold up?"

"That's what I'm wondering," Yussef commented, "stay sharp, the twins might just be good enough to get through to you."

Allsion laughed, "Aahhhh, is Yu-chan worried about getting beat by a couple little girls?"

"Sorry, Laura, I didn't quite catch that."

"Bite your tongue," Allison snarled.

Chuckling at the exchange, Yussef let the spell fade, and cocked an eyebrow at Marcel. The French boy shrugged, before reporting, "Roughly what we expected. Toushiro and Mariachi have the twins pinned down, but the two of them are shielding each other. Not a good shield, mind you – about where we were last October or November – but good enough, with them watching each other's backs. The surprise is Didier – he's very well hidden, moving very cautiously. I've got a monitor on him, but can't tell where he is. Luke and Ichigo are looking for him, should have him shortly. Noah's moving up to assist Toushiro and Mariachi."

Yussef nodded along, quietly impressed both with the new kids, and with how close the class was coming to his projections. He had expected the twins to last the longest, hoped for it in fact, though he had no intention of letting them get any further. Still, Didier was going to be problematic, especially if he lasted much longer. Re-shaping the communication spell, he ordered, "Noah, hold up a bit. Toushiro, Mariachi, keep the twins pinned, but don't take them down yet. Wait for Luke and Ichigo to snag Didier."

"Roger that," Noah replied, followed by the other two.

Yussef re-targeted the spell again, "Luke, status."

"Think we've got him," the Australian murmured back, "A hollow where a couple shields don't quite meet. He's good at rabbiting, though. Dodged a couple shots I was sure would catch him."

"Get him quick, please. This is taking too long"

"Yeah, figured that. Now shut up and lemme get back to it."

Didier proved not to be where Luke thought he was, but close enough that when Ichigo and Luke moved on that space, they scared him into bolting. Yussef watched on the screen, impressed by how well the young African managed to make use of cover, but Luke and Ichigo had been right on top of him, and their very-low-powered busters, caught him less than a minute after he broke cover. Noah, Toushiro and Mariachi rolled the twins a minute later, and Marcel triggered 'end of scenario' alarm, causing the shields to pulse once and vanish. The twins got further than Yussef had expected, almost half way across, but still painfully far from the finish line.

As the first years were hustled back, Yussef strolled along with Marcel just a step behind, contemplating what, specifically, he was going to say to them. Judging by the glares being aimed at him, no one appreciated his little trap, but that would just make his points stick harder. He was momentarily distracted when Zafira raised one open hand, Zulfiqar resting on his palm. Yussef nodded, and summoned the device to his wrist just as he came close enough to speak.

Not giving the first years a chance to complain, he asked, "Why did none of you make it?"

"Because you cheated," Ekavir answered, waving at the second years. "You never said anything about these guys!"

Yussef smirked. "Did I say I would be the only one in the maze? Did any of you ask? Regardless, that is not the reason you failed. I'll give you a hint, it's related to who got the furthest and how they did it."

"The twins and Didier have done this before," Mercedes said, but her tone suggested she was very uncertain about it, "they've fought before?"

Yussef shook his head, "No, experience was not the deciding factor. Kaemon has actual training..."

"Only in kendo, not ninja games like this was," Kaemon interrupted.

"... and you, Mercedes, have some self-defense training. The two of you have the closest thing to 'military' training that all of you are thinking of. No, the reason the twins got the furthest is simply that, of all of you, they were the only ones who _worked together_. All of you headed out on your own, treating this like some sort of race. The twins went together, watched each others' back, and acted cooperatively. Remember the condition of passing? _Any _of you makes it, _all _of you pass. Had the ten of you worked together, you could have overwhelmed any two of us you ran into. You would have taken casualties, but you would have been able to get one of you through to the safe zone.

"One of our guest teachers told us last year that time to think was the most precious thing you have in any sort of battle. The easiest and most reliable way to do that is to have someone watching your back. History has proven time and again that people working in unison, as a team, can defeat many times their number of less organized foes. When we faced the Circles last year, we were outnumbered every time, yet we triumphed, because where the Circles focused on enhancing single fighters, we concentrated on working as a team at all times. Teamwork defeated them, and that is what I will teach you here, what I taught these gentlemen last year. You may never need it for battle, I hope you never do, but it will still be useful for the rest of your lives.

"Cruel as it was, this little exercise demonstrated two things. One, the fact that those who worked together got themselves further than those who tried to run solo. Second, it showed you kids precisely where you'll be next year. You thought it wasn't fun being on the receiving end? Wait until next year when you get to do the same thing to the new kids.

"For now, what we're going to do is work on working together." Yussef accessed the room controls through Zulfiqar, and brought up a new series of shields. "Some of you may have seen something like this in the past, though they're usually made with ropes, hence the common name of 'ropes course'. We have a series of exercises which, in order to get past them, you must work together."

Sure enough, the shields that formed were long rods, rather than walls, supported between or around columnar shields. The rods interlaced and overlapped, some creating nets, others simply hanging in air. The first years looked doubtfully at the course, then back at him, and he just grinned. "Guys, let's show them how it's done."

00000

Kaemon hesitated for a brief moment when he saw the sparring circle already occupied, then continued walking. Laura was alone, progressing through a kata at very high speed, so once he reached the pillars, he just dropped his bag and leaned against one to watch.

She nodded once to acknowledge his presence, but did not slow down in the least. Still weaving through the training, she asked, "So, you going to take Sensei's offer?"

Kaemon had to think for a second to figure out which of their many teachers she meant, before realizing it was Signum-sensei. "Um, still thinking about it, to be honest."

"You should, she's the best," Laura called. "I still can't touch her."

Kaemon shook his head, "But I'm no martial artist. I just like kendo."

Laura just laughed as she slowed to a halt, converting the kata into a strolling walk towards him. "That'll last a session, I bet. She says you're good enough, you like kendo, it'll be good reinforcement for the magic."

Kaemon shrugged, "but not necessarily what I'm interested in. Are you going to be much longer?"

"Unfortunately she is," Signum said, making Kaemon jump. He had not heard a thing and she was standing practically at his shoulder. "Laura and I have a session scheduled for now. Since you are here, perhaps you would be interested in an experiment?"

"Ah... I'm not sure that would be wise, Signum-sensei."

Laura giggled at that, then said, "Oh come on, K-chan, I won't hurt you."

"Laura, behave," Signum said. "Kaemon, this would not commit you to anything. But Laura has only sparred with me, and it would do her good to face a different opponent."

Taking in Laura's grin, and realizing he could walk away from this with physical bruises or verbal scars, Kaemon sighed, and nodded his head. "All right, sensei."

Signum's expression did not change in the least, but he had the distinct impression she looked smug, all of a sudden. Laura just giggled evilly. Signum spoke first, "Did you bring your kendo armor?"

"No, sensei, I was just going to practice alone, I did not expect to spar. The bag is just water and a couple towels." He hefted the wooden sword in his hand, "and my bokken, of course."

Signum thought it over for a second, then nodded. "I can provide the armor. Laura, bring up your own, please." Signum pulled a necklace out of her collar, and a moment later it flashed into the shape of a heavy sword. "Levantine, Ward of the Defended."

Kaemon could not help flinching as the purple light washed over him, but it settled around him without harming him. When he looked down, he found that the spell had created padding over his clothes, roughly analogous to kendo armor, but covering far more and replacing much of the usual stiff bracing with more padding.

"My version of something Zafira helped Yussef create last year," Signum commented as she stepped closer and checked the armor, tugging at various places to make sure it was seated properly. "Last year's events made it clear I had been lax in considering the students' safety. This should protect you from most low-grade magical attacks, and will more than suffice to blunt any blows from sparring." She grinned slightly, "though I promise, you will still bruise."

Kaemon shrugged fatalistically at that. Bruises were part and parcel of kendo, though he was fairly certain he would have some unique ones after this. Still, nerves or not, he could not deny being somewhat curious. Laura was the second most visible student from the prior year, after Noriko-hime, and the idea of seeing if she was as good as the media made her out to be was irresistible. He was a little curious what she would be using for a weapon, though.

Signum watched him enter the circle, then asked, "Do you remember where it is, Laura?"

"Hai, sensei," she sang, then closed her eyes, held out her hands, and said, "Hicho Zwei." When the light that coalesced above her hands cleared, she held a long wooden shaft wrapped in twin lines of black, at the end of which was a wider curve of wood with a vaguely blade-like shape – a training version of a naginata.

_Oh, this is so not good,_ Kaemon thought as he proceeded through a warm-up routine. _Just think of it as taking on sensei back in Osaka. Winning is not the goal, learning is. Strengths and weaknesses. She has the advantage in reach and skill, probably in speed as well. But she is impatient, direct. Wait for her attack and reverse it._

When he was warmed up, he found Laura practically bouncing as she waited for him. He shook his head, glanced at Signum, and when she made no move or gesture, took up his opening stance. True to prediction, Laura barely gave him time to get set before she charged, five long strides then a leaping lunge. Kaemon watched her come, and stepped into the lunge, catching her weapon on his, using the bokken to lever her naginata to his left, then snapping the blade around in a fast slash.

The usual response was to duck under the blow, but Laura surprised him by blocking – with the armored panel on the back of her left fist. The surprise held him static for a moment, unable to adapt to the alteration from what he had expected. Then a cannon hit him in the side just beneath his left arm, sending him stumbling him sideways. Surprise made him trip over his own two feet, and he tumbled to the ground. He started to get up, just in time to find the wooden 'blade' of her naginata hovering over the bridge of his nose.

"Point," Laura said, then whipped the blade away and extended a hand.

Taking the offer at value, Kaemon let her help him up, then ran one hand over his ribs. "Ow."

"Sorry 'bout that," she said, hefting the naginata, "this thing's lighter than Hicho was, just a bit. I'm still getting used to how much force to use with it."

Rubbing his side, Kaemon asked, "How'd you hit me that hard? You were over-extended, didn't have the room to swing."

Laura shrugged, "I broke the rules." She stepped back, and extended the naginata again, assuming the same position she held when she hit him, left arm folded around her torso holding her weapon from underneath, right arm out and up at ninety degrees to block. "See where the haft is?"

He could see the difference between what he expected, and subconsciously allowed himself to see, and what she was actually doing immediately – her grip was for a right-handed attack, and had she not been blocking, that hand would have been forward of her left, controlling the weapon's direction. But that same grip mandated that the haft pass beneath her right arm, whereas it was currently beneath her left arm. "You used your body for leverage, instead of your wrist."

"Yup. I may not be a big bruiser, but a whole-body strike like that'll still raise a bruise. Problem with a strike from the wrist, like the one you tried, or even shoulder, is that while they're fast, unless you're lunging, you won't get your whole body into the blow."

"You tricked me," he realized with a start. "You knew I'd block your first strike, and lead me right into opening myself up."

"And you followed along like a kid to a candy store," she replied with a grin.

"You did well to turn her first strike," Signum told him. "As fast as she is, with a weapon you are unfamiliar with, she had a good chance to score then and there. To not only turn it, but counter... not a bad beginning, but you can do better. Reset."

Twenty minutes later, Kaemon was bruised, battered, and seriously wondering if he actually had a choice in taking up Signum's offer. It had not been a very long sparring session, not at all, but none of the fights had lasted very long. To his pleasure, he had managed to at least hit Laura one out of three bouts, though he had not won any of them. She was just as fiendishly fast as he had heard, and he found himself thinking and reacting in the structured norms of kendo, rather than the free-form manner of actual combat, to his detriment.

"You should take her offer," Laura repeated as they walked back towards the dorms. "You're too linear in your fighting, and you spend too much time thinking, but you're quick and stubborn enough to be good at real swordsmanship."

Signum had said much the same before dismissing them, though he had noted she was much harder on Laura. Still, "I'm not that interested in martial arts. I like kendo for the competition, the discipline. Martial arts is about hurting people, however much people claim it's all 'self defense'."

"Yeah, that it is," Laura agreed softly. "But it's also about discipline, control, self-knowledge. You'd learn a lot more of all of that from Sensei than from kendo. What's better, K-chan... knowing how not to hurt someone when you've got a bokken in hand and they're in kendo armor, or knowing how not to hurt someone when you've got a device in hand and they're trying to kill you? Been there, done that, and if sensei hadn't taken me in hand last year, I'd be dead right now."

"All that is over, isn't it?"

Laura shook her head, "not by a long shot. The Circles are still out there, and they may be scared and gone to ground now, but they're not going to stay that way. Even if they do, there's all sorts of big bads on the loose out there in the galaxy at large. They come to Earth, we're going to be the ones dealing with them. You don't absolutely need Sensei's training to handle that, but it'll sure help."

Further discussion was cut off by a most unexpected source. The twins materialized out of the Girls' Wing as he and Laura passed, and said in unison, "We have it, Sims-san."

Kaemon had thought the look she gave him when he agreed to spar was evil, but the manic grin that appeared on her face was downright terrifying, made worse by the speed with which her prior seriousness vanished, and by her sole response of, "_Eee_xcssellent."

00000

Shortly after dinner, leaning back in a chair turned half around, Mercedes watched Aria and Noriko fiddling with the four foot tall electronics cart off to one side for a few curious minutes, before asking the question on everyone else's mind. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Depends on what you think it is," Lotte replied from across the table, one ear flicking incessantly. "If you think it's something fun, you're wrong. If you think it's the most insidiously vicious of public humiliation systems known to any sentient race, euphemistically referred to as a karaoke machine, you're probably right."

Mercedes was comfortable enough with her teachers now to smile at Lotte's disgruntled tone, but not quite comfortable enough to laugh outright, "Don't like them, huh?"

The ear-twitch became more violent for a few seconds, while the other ear flattened completely, "You're hearing isn't as good as mine, Mercedes-chan. Not nearly as good. I can't believe Hayate-sama allowed that torture device in here!"

"It was a combination of birthday and report card present," Noriko said, taking a step back while Aria fiddled with connections in the back. "Hayate-sensei agreed I could bring it and set it up so we could have some fun here beyond studying all day every day, though if we have any discipline problems it has to go away. So, if last year is any indication, it should be here all year."

Sprawled half over the neighboring table, only technically sitting in her chair, Laura asked, "You actually going to sing, Riko-chan? Do you even know how?"

Noriko shook her head slightly, "I will sing, yes, and I do not embarrass myself, but I am not trained. You're not supposed to know how, anyways. You're supposed to have fun, to laugh. How about you, Laura? Care to try your hand at it?"

Laura smirked, "Nah, I'm not even allowed to sing 'happy birthday'. Windows break, puppies run screaming, that sort of thing."

Mercedes would have commented, but a gentle touch on her shoulder interrupted her. Turning, she found herself face to face with the Stepford Twins. They blinked at her in unison, then one held out a PDA. "We believe this is yours, Mercedes-san," the other said. "We found it in the Library just now."

Reaching out with some confusion – she remembered her PDA being safely tucked away in her bag in her room after studying for an afternoon in the library – Mercedes took the item, and tapped it alive. Sure enough, the login display came up with her avatar and ID. "Whoa, thank you," she told the two of them honestly, "I would have been looking for that for ages."

"You are welcome, Mercedes-san," they replied in unison, making her shiver a little, then turned and strolled over to an unoccupied table.

Mercedes shook it off. _They may be creepy, but they've been polite enough so far. But man, if I ever see one of them walking around with a knife... scratch that, if I ever see __one__ of them, I'm running for the hills._

She headed into the dorm, moving at a quick walk so she would not miss the unveiling of the school's 'public humiliation system'. She reached her room, unlocked it and went to enter when a pulse of magic from her hand distracted her. She glanced down in time to see the PDA in her hand glowing, then a fluttering drew her attention upwards again, and she gasped in shock, feeling like someone had punched her in the gut. For a second, all she could do was stare at the carnage, at the twisted wreckage of what had been her room, at her torn and shredded clothes, the smashed desk and computer, the utter devastation.

Then realization struck of what had happened, who was responsible, and rage exploded. _I thought they were being nice! I was going to be friends!_ She spun about on her heel and this time there was no 'walking' about it, she hit the door to the common area hard enough to slam it back on its hinges and make Cid-chan jump half out of her chair. She almost hit the doors to the dining hall as hard, but remembered the presence of Aria and Lotte at the last second, and settled for striding across the large room to where the twins were sitting, heads together.

They looked up as she crossed to them, and she threw the PDA down on the table from a good three meters out. "What did you do?! What was it?! It had to come from that thing, the pulse was the only thing that could have caused it! There's nothing left! Nothing but wrack and ruin! Storms don't do that much damage, and you two did it, didn't you?!"

They blinked at her again, and asked, "Whatever are you talking about, Mercedes-san?"

Mercedes had to count to ten before she took a swing at the both of them. Yussef used that pause to reach in between them and pick up the PDA. "Calmly, Mercedes, don't jump to conclusions." She turned her glare on him, only to have him wave behind her. Looking back, she blinked in surprise, to find the entire room just as badly wrecked as her room had been. Strangely, though, no one was looking too upset, but mostly ruefully amused. A shift of motion focused her attention, and she realized that the only person present whose face she could not see was Laura, who was hunched over in her chair shaking. "A purely optical illusion," Yussef continued, and a second later another pulse of magic washed over her, and the room suddenly snapped back to normal, "no sound or touch, no smell or taste, just the sight of destruction. Not bad, ditz, but you're going to have to be careful. We're wise to this one now."

Laura stopped suppressing her laughter, and almost fell out of her chair laughing so hard. "Come on, Yu-chan! You _know _I've got better tricks prepped just for you! Let the prank fit the victim, ne?"

"I await your antics with my usual stoic dread." He turned and offered the PDA to Mercedes again. "Sorry about her, but it's clean now. My word on it."

Mercedes remembered at the last second not to snatch the PDA, and not to light into the American ditz. _Don't yell at her,_ she reminded herself, _just ignore her._ Nodding to Yussef, she said, "Thank you, Yussef. Do you think you could show me how to do that, how to clean off someone else's magic?"

"Not tonight, but certainly. I think I have some time free Tuesday afternoon..."

"Wednesday," Marcel interrupted, "an hour after Lotte-sensei's class. Or Thursday seven to whenever."

"Dibs on Thursday," Toushiro called out from a table by the doors, "we've almost got a curved version of the reactive shield working, and I wanna see something blow up in _his _face for once."

00000

Laura dropped into the space between the twins while Mercedes was being distracted, dropping an arm over each twin's shoulder. "Beautiful work, girls, just beautiful. I hereby christen thee Wrack and Ruin, and welcome you into my service. Who're we going after next?"

"Preferably no one," Lotte said as she leaned over the far side of the table. "That was a mean trick, Laura."

"She deserved it."

"She had already been chastised for her behavior the first day."

Laura laughed, "No, Lotte-sensei, not for that. She deserved it for being stuck-up in general. A spoiled little rich girl to balance Yu-chan's being a spoiled little rich boy. I civilized him, I'll civilize her, too."

Lotte gave her a jaundiced look, then pinned the twins with a glare. "How much did you two have to do with this?"

"Everything," Saeryn replied calmly.

"We obtained the PDA for Laura-san," Rhys added.

"With full understanding of her plans," Saeryn finished.

"Aho!" Laura swatted both of them upside the head, "You're not supposed to admit things like that!"

Rhys tried to hit her back, though Laura blocked it. Saeryn settled for smoothing her hair and shaking her head. "Denials would not have been believed. Better to accept the consequences and move on."

"True, true," Lotte said, "and you get points for honesty. Laura, you're confined to the library from end of classes to dinner, confined to your room after dinner until first class, and not allowed in a workroom outside of class, for the rest of the week. Twins, you've got the same restrictions through tomorrow and Tuesday. I'd be nicer if you'd done it to Yu-chan, Laura, but Mercedes is a first year. She's too new for anything this rough."

As Lotte walked back over to 'help' her sister with the karaoke machine, Laura commandeered the chair next to Rhys. "Seriously, you two, thanks. If she tries to get back at you let me know, I'll keep her focused on more important things."

"She will not focus on us," Saeryn predicted. "She will focus on her tormentor, rather than the tormentor's assistants. You do, however, owe us."

Laura quirked an eyebrow at that, "Oh? and here I thought I was already helping you with your magic. What is it you think I owe you?"

"Paradox."

Laura coughed in surprise, folding forward until she caught herself on the table. "Paradox? The Hell you talking about? Nothing's worth my device."

"We do not want your device, Laura-san," Saeryn said.

"We wish to study it," Rhys finished.

Laura stared at them for a second, trying to figure out if they were bluffing or not. She had learned first hand why none of her teachers had let her near their devices last year. It was not that they did not want her studying devices or were worried about her damaging them, it was that such things were extremely personal, intimate. The bond between a mage and device, however far from or close to sentience any given device reached, and only considering 'normal' devices, rather than oddities like the Deva ones, was a deep, personal and private thing. Bureau law, Hayate had explained the second day of classes this year, recognized that familiars were mostly independent but still bound to obey their creator, thus making the creator responsible for the familiar in the same manner as a commander was responsible for his subordinates, a parent for their children. In contrast, and helping explain why devices were so well defended, that same law recognized no difference at all between a mage and their device, even in the case of manifestly independent ones such as Reinforce.

Thanks to all of that, and the specific circumstances of her own experience, the idea of letting anyone else take a peek at Paradox made Laura distinctly uncomfortable, despite knowing that the design was quite well known to all her teachers. Showing it to these two was a whole other question. "Why? Why study it, when you'll get to make your own..." She trailed off as the question answered itself, then sighed and shook her head, "You two terrors think you're going to build your own devices this year, don't you?"

"You did," they chorused.

"And paid a price for it," Laura countered. "Riko-chan and I are in almost as much danger from our devices as whoever we're using them against. Yu-chan's in more danger, since, you know, he's so hopeless and all."

"We wish to study your device," Saeryn repeated.

"We will study it," Rhys added, "with your assistance, or with Maricopa-san's."

That was going too far, and Laura almost let her see just how bad. Then she got her temper under control, and smirked, then lunged forward, pinching Rhys cheek. "Oh, you are just too _cute _when you're trying to be all evil and intimidating! I wish I had a camera!" Rhys twisted free, staring at her in utter shock, and Laura laughed, "Don't try and threaten me, Ruin-chan. Here, I'll give you an example." The communication spell took some work, since she had not used it for a while, but it came together, "Allina-chan? Got a question for you."

"Sure thing," Allina replied, audible to the twins.

"What would you do if someone asked you for a copy of Paradox's design?"

There was a moment of silence, then, "I dunno, laugh at them? I'd probably fob off the fake design 'Jana and I cooked up over the summer. Suitably sabotaged, of course. Why?"

"'Cause the twins are precocious, and I'm furthering their education in mischief."

"God spare us all," Allina prayed. "Just so you know, I'm blogging this. It's morally requisite, warning everyone on Earth."

"Oh, everyone already knows," Laura answered proudly. "They helped me get Mercedes just now."

"We're doomed," Allina moaned, "utterly doomed."

"Yup!"

"Well, go doom someone else, please. 'Jana and I are working on our own device designs."

"Sure thing, Allina-chan. Thanks!" Laura let the spell fade. Then she dropped the smile and fixed the twins with an almost-glare. "I will _think _about showing you the document I used to design Paradox. I will _agree _to assist you with your device designs, whenever you are allowed to begin. But you try to pull something like that again, you try to steal someone else's design or 'borrow' their device, I'll be all over you like dirt on the ground, and what I did to Yu-chan last year will seem like paradise."

Certain that the silent duo was sufficiently intimidated and educated for the moment, Laura got up to head back over the karaoke machine that was apparently undergoing final checks. She reached for Hayate as she walked.

00000

Hayate was in her office, going over initial impressions with Shamal and Tai-yu when she felt the touch of Laura's mind. _'Yes, Laura?'_

_'Just thought you should know, sensei,'_ Laura said, sounding inordinately pleased with herself, _'Wrack and Ruin are already plotting nefarious means to build their own devices.'_

_'Wrack and Ruin?'_

_'The twins. Mercedes named them, just now. Ask Lotte-sensei about it, she loved it!'_

_'I highly doubt that,'_ Hayate countered, contemplating what carnage could have earned the twins those names, then confirmed, _'The twins are really pursuing devices?'_ That was highly surprising, especially given the girls' Circle origins. Hayate had expected Mercedes or Chen-chi to be the first to make efforts in that direction, and expected the twins to avoid devices as much as possible.

_'Yup, really. They tried to con me out of Paradox's design, then tried to get Allina to fork it over. I told them not to, but they'll probably try something anyhow. Just thought you should know now, instead of when they start hacking the network.'_

_'Thank you, Laura, I appreciate it. Don't give them any help yet, but... if we do decide to let them try it, would you be willing to help them?'_

Laura chuckled mentally, _'Sure, gotta keep my minions in hand, after all.'_

Hayate felt a sinking sensation at that, _'Minions?'_

_'Yup, minions! Got Mercedes, now they're going to help me get Yu-chan!'_

The sinking sensation became a full-on plummet, and she closed her eyes for a moment, sending a prayer to the Heavens for strength, before replying. _'Please, don't get them into trouble, Laura.'_

_'Not too much, at least,'_ Laura said, _'I'm just going to get them to loosen up.'_

Hayate could only shake her head as the connection faded, to find Shamal and Tai-yu waiting patiently for her. "Laura just informed me of the twin's precociousness." Briefly she explained what Laura had told her, including the nicknames. She managed to keep it to a smile as Shamal's frown deepened, remembering the blond woman's comments over the summer, and how those comments had become less forgiving as Cid-chan integrated into their family.

"I suppose she is the best to balance them," Shamal allowed, "I just can't help thinking she's going to get into even more trouble this year, and drag them along with her."

"Nothing too wrong with that," Tai-yu countered. "Given their probable training and upbringing, they've probably been extremely sheltered... no, not sheltered, but... isolated, limited contact with people their own age. A little wildness would be good for them, and from what I've heard, a little steadiness would be good for Laura."

"True," Shamal agreed, "we'll just have to keep an eye on things, as usual."

"I'm surprised by the twins' interest in devices, though," Tai-yu said. "They should be far more afraid of them. They're young enough they would not have heard much in the way of actual Circle history, but they will have heard the basic legends and tales, all of which are big on the message of 'artificial magic is vile'."

"I am surprised as well," Hayate admitted. "They have the control, but not the experience, especially not in the magic we teach."

"Neither did Laura, or Noriko and Yussef," Shamal said. "We can keep them from making the same mistakes those three did, so I don't really see a reason to stop them. But, not yet. Give them a few weeks to get settled and see if we can find out why they are so interested."

"Don't put them in the regular device class, though," Tai-yu said. "The conflict with their schedule is minor, but they have started to interface with their year-mates, and altering their schedules would undermine that."

"No, we wouldn't alter their schedule," Hayate agreed easily enough, "but we would allow them to build devices on their own time. Possibly, at least. I agree, Shamal, we need to watch them a little longer, make sure they settle in."

"And find out why they are interested in devices in the first place," Shamal finished.

00000

hwsod: Thank you very much! Sorry I didn't reply last chapter, I didn't get your review until after I'd posted last chaper.

Kell Shock: I understand your opposition and argument, but in counter – modern high-security computers are set up with 'limited access', but are still frighteningly vulnerable. Don't worry, though, Allina and Niranjana will enjoy success, but not what you're fearing. The twins are normal, just not very well socialized, and anyone who's met her knows that Laura is nuts:). I've always pictured Cidela as 'mousy', just never said it in so many words – none of the second years would call her that, just out of politeness. As for the familiars, based entirely on tidbits heard in Nanoha As and ye olde Wikipedia, I have the impression that yes, it is a constant drain, that worsens when the familiar is in larger forms and/or performing drastic magic. Hayate's ability to maintain three familiars without apparent strain is a major indicator of her strength. As for how the Lieze twins survived Admiral Graham, I never mentioned it, but he did not die unexpectedly, and he gave them a reserve of energies to maintain them until they could speak to Hayate. Mercedes' 'just desserts' are above, though that is not the end of the matter. Tai-yu will be teaching, but not a class of her own just yet. Her presence in Egypt was due to the fact that she was the most familiar of Hayate's people with the Circles, thus the best to advise Yuuno on his interactions with the Circles. Marterosian is an Armenian name, chosen to give the twins a unique heritage other than 'southern belles', and I got it from an acquaintance of mine, who provides the visual inspiration and name for the twin's father.

CrimsonDX: Natalia's eye-patch was a compromise. Her eye has a further role to play, but having it constantly active would probably result in suicide of one form or another. So the eye-patch to keep it under control. Allina and Niranjana will have some problems to work their way around, but it always struck me as a logical counter to a device mage.

Eternal Longing: Thank you for the compliments, but I'm afraid daily updates would be impossible. I sometimes go a couple days without writing more than a sentence, and sometimes get half a chapter done in a day. Laura is back to 'normal', though how's the above for mischief? The relationships are clearer because I've already got them planned out this time, though not all the relationships are as they appear so far. Yuuno's name is something of a self-correction – I finished Path of Vengeance with his marriage to Nanoha, but referred to her as 'Takamichi' when she guest-taught Lotte's class n Academy Blues. So he followed some 'rare traditions' of his homeworld and took his wife's last name. It probably also helps with the whole 'recognition' factor, since there are probably several 'Scrya' family members running around the Bureau, but there's only two 'Takamichi'. Yuuno was handling the diplomacy because he's the most diplomatic character I remember from the series (short of Chrono's mother, who's retired), and because, as Head Librarian, he would be the most authoritative person involved in the proposed data exchanges.

Natimus Prime: Your method seems like a lot of effort, but seemed to work out fine. Too much like work for my tastes, though:). I already have the devices figured, and there will be a roughly equal mix of Midchildan/Velkan designs, with a couple surprises for fun. More will be made of Allina's & Niranjana's plans, which should make for pleasant surprises all around. Laura's recruiting of the twins was for contrast, an 'odd trio' as opposed to an 'odd couple', but also because I have some plans for them. You're right, though, there will be friction, and Laura will quite happily cause most of it. Verner's supposed to be laconic, quiet, easy-going and calm, but you know what they say about the quiet ones. More of the original cast will be appearing, though not for a while, they play a part in the major plot. Kriegsen will also be showing up, though some of his machinations are already appearing. As I told CrimsonDX, Natalia's eyepatch was a compromise – I was originally going to have her follow through on the idea of taking out her own eye. Glad you're enjoying the story!

TheWhiteMonk: I'm guessing 'impressed' is some combination of red, green and blue. I've got two Side Stories in the works, but merrily proceeded to stump myself with both of them, as well as get sidetracked with other projects. While I've seen digests and reviews of Machiavelli, I haven't actually read any of his books, though I _have_ read The Art of War by Sun Tzu. While I thank you for the compliment as to the complexity of the plot, I prefer to call it 'Byzantine'. Machiavelli has some bad common connotations, while most people today seem to have never heard of Byzantium. Finally, a most heartfelt thanks for the comparison to David Weber – he's far better than I ever expect to be, but the comparison is appreciated.

SpaceBrotha: Waiting all day? You've gotta be in Europe, then, 'cause I posted about ten or eleven in the morning, US Eastern time. Unless FFN was its usual efficient self… The devices won't all show up at once, and they should be interesting, as not all of them will be 'standard' designs like Yussef's and Laura's. Still a couple months in-story time down the road. In standard terms, Allison could be more dangerous than Laura, but she lacks Laura's creative unpredictability – Laura will always be able to surprise whoever she's up against, while someone could study Allison well enough to predict her. You're right, though, she's far less concerned than Laura with what damage she might inflict on an enemy. I agree with most of your arguments on why hacking a device won't work, but the AI one is a wash – Allina's device will have its own AI, programmed to find the weaknesses in device AIs that aren't seriously programmed to defend against such attacks. Though that doesn't counter the issue of how to open communications between the two devices. Ekavir's approaching Niranjana was (and remains in his mind) solely about getting the best tutor he can, though his interests are changing. Here's Laura's (first) target, and yes, she's giving the twins as much trouble as she's giving anyone else. I did have fun with Cidela's scene, though I like Chen-chi's reaction to her as well. How the second years react to someone calling Cidela a 'mouse' would probably depend on the tone and circumstances – so long as it wasn't used to be mean, there wouldn't be a problem. Verner's calm personality, and the reasons for it, will be demonstrated in due course, though it's not as dramatic as you're suggesting, sorry. As for Laura's vow not to kill, it's a limit, not a weakness, and one of the oldest continuously used definitions of what is 'good' includes the line 'Thou shalt not kill'. I'm quite well aware of how it can get her in a jam, but for her it is a matter of personal conscience. Tai-yu was present not so much to interface with the Circles as to advise Yuuno on how to do that. As for his power with a device, that's an interesting question, now isn't it? You are quite right that Natalia has no idea how accurate her predictions are, since she has yet to encounter anyone she predicted would be dead already. That will be developed later in the story, though. The 'self-fulfilling prophecy' or hurrying fate along is a concern, but on the other hand, she did give her grandmother a chance to say goodbye. I know about the problem with the future-quote, but pushing for names won't help. I'll reveal them when I reveal them, though you've gotten two above (Wrack and Ruin), and future chapters will answer such questions.


	5. 04 Harbinger

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-04 – Harbinger-

Yussef saw Mercedes waiting in the hall when Lotte finally released them from class, and gestured towards the workroom across the hall. Everyone else walked past her with little more than friendly nods, but Laura gave Mercedes quite the cheerful greeting. Mercedes returned most of the greetings, but the Italian girl met Laura's with a flat glare that Laura laughed off, as usual.

"Don't let her see she's getting to you," Yussef advised as he crossed the hall. "The more she sees she's succeeding, the more fun she has."

"Easier said than done," Mercedes muttered as he unlocked the workroom.

"But worth the effort." Yussef said as he unlocked the door and held it open for Mercedes, simultaneously verifying that the monitoring systems were on. Japan or not, habit and upbringing made him very glad that no one was ever really alone in a workroom, especially when it was just him and any of the girls. "As my father pointed out to me over the summer, I learned quite a lot from her about self control and maintaining calm. Not that she was aiming for that, but any lesson's a good one."

"Maybe," Mercedes said with a shrug, "but frankly, I'm thinking of trying something else."

Yussef studied her for a second, debating how to reply to that, before telling her, "Revenge would be chancy, depending on how you went about getting it. For all her antics, Laura has never gone too far. She delights in pushing that limit, but she's never broken it, not even final day last year."

Mercedes shook her head, "I'm not going to do anything too bad, just give her a taste of her own medicine. Want to help?"

Yussef thought it over for all of half a second, before deciding it would be better to 'help', and thereby moderate whatever Mercedes thought to try. "Sure. But we'll have to be very careful. She's ridiculously observant."

"All the easier to get her then. Should be easy enough to focus her on one thing, and hit her with something else. I've got some ideas, we can talk them over later. For now, though... how did you even detect her magic? Lotte-sensei showed us some sensory magic Friday, but nothing I remember from that class can make heads or tails of all the energies around here."

Yussef chuckled at her aggrieved tone, "If it was the same thing Lotte-sensei showed _us _the first couple of weeks, it's the equivalent of learning in class what end of a gun the bullet comes out of. You need to know it, so that you know what to do next, but it isn't really useful in and of itself."

"I don't know," Mercedes commented, giving him a strange look, "knowing which end of a gun not to be in front of seems like pretty vital info to me. But I get you're point. Like knowing bow from stern, port from starboard. Learn how to get around the ship before you learn how to get around _with_ it."

That statement gave him an opening to ask about something that had been mildly bothering him. "Where do you keep coming up with ship references?"

She blinked at him in surprise, then chuckled, "Yeah, you wouldn't know, would you? We don't have much to do with Mideast shipping. My great grandfather and grandfather built a shipping company out of Taranto. Mostly just the Mediterranean, but some Atlantic shipping as well, to Europe and North Africa. They both insisted, and Daddy's just as bad, that everyone in the family know how to work a boat, so we go out a couple times a year."

"Makes sense," Yussef nodded, "thanks. Our family's traditions vary, depending on if you're talking to my father or mother. Mother's a real fanatic on education, Father is proud of it, but also big on political stability and military prowess. Traditional Arabian values."

"Pretty much traditional wherever, actually," Mercedes argued. "But not helping me pick up on Laura's traps."

"No, it isn't," Yussef agreed. "What we'll do today is work on that base Lotte-sensei showed you. Mostly, I'll just show you how to filter out the 'background noise'. Anything more complicated than that, it's better to wait until she goes over it. The workrooms are great for practicing scans, their shields are very carefully built to both keep out magical interference, and to minimize their own interference. So I'll show you how to refine the spell, and then create a few interferences for you to deal with."

They worked on it for almost an hour, and he felt Mercedes was making good progress. She could separate out the distinct effects he generated, though that was all she managed – telling them apart. She could not identify them with any specificity, nor could she tell range or power to any precise degree, but she could at least tell they were 'different' from each other. She was more than pleased with the progress, and remarkably un-hesitant about expressing that emotion.

Yussef found the situation a little odd. Last year the only solo sessions he had with anyone were with the guys, which experience had two differences from working with Mercedes. Most glaringly, for all his better skills, the guys were still his classmates and knew almost as much as he did, even if they didn't always believe that. The second difference that took some getting used to was that a certain amount of ribbing and horseplay was expected with the guys – if joking insults weren't sneaking into the conversation, it usually meant someone was in a bad mood. Working with Noriko and Laura, there had always been the constant struggle to keep up with Noriko and the somewhat less friendly bickering with Laura. Helping Mercedes required an entirely different set of rules and behaviors, which he had to figure out as he went along.

They were interrupted nearly an hour later by Signum releasing the locks. She stepped in without sealing the door again, and merely smirked at the annoyed look Mercedes sent her when the sudden wash of magical signatures disrupted the girl's latest attempt at a spell. "You two have been in here long enough," Signum said. "Much longer, and you will dull the lessons learned today."

"I was going to call it after this attempt, Signum-sensei," Yussef replied. "I need to meet Marcel and Luke anyhow."

"Before you do, I understand you've got something to talk to me about," she said, crossing her arms and leaning back against the door.

Glancing at Mercedes, uncertain if he wanted an audience for this, he debated only a second. Then he pulled out his PDA, and while digging through it for the document, he explained, "It was about this ridiculous 'Myrmidon' game Marcel cooked up. If you're..."

"It is not a game," Signum interrupted. "You say you want to lead troops, that you are a soldier, Yussef. What is the most important thing in the world to a soldier?"

"His weapons."

"A common misconception. A solider is a soldier, regardless of whether or not she has weapons to hand. Whether armed with a sword, bow, gun, tank, warship, or mage device, all soldiers value their comrades above all. That brotherhood, that shared identity and mutual discipline, is what separates a soldier from a warrior, a trooper from a thug, gives them the strength to carry through when mere weapons would fail. They are your Myrmidons, and that spirit carried all of you through last year, and will serve you well in the years to come, however peaceful or violent they may be. I admit, they are being a little theatrical about it, but most children – and most soldiers – are overly melodramatic, for understandable reasons. So stop trying to convince me to shut them down, and get to the point."

Yussef stared at her for a second, surprised by the almost-vehement response, but it was one he was too familiar with, even if he had not applied it to his classmates. _Wonder if that was willful blindness,_ he thought very privately. _Regardless, she's made up her mind and won't listen to argument A, which leaves topic B._ "Well, in that case," he said aloud, switching documents on his PDA, "I've got a rough list of requirements for membership you wanted."

"Myrmidons?" Mercedes leaned sideways to try and see the screen as Yussef handed it to Signum. "I think I've heard you guys mention them, but what are they?"

"They're us," Yussef said as Signum read, then gave Mercedes a brief explanation. She seemed torn between incredulity and curiosity, but did not indulge in either before Signum spoke.

Signum passed the PDA back, "The list is simple enough, but I'd like your explanations for each requirement."

Yussef glanced at the screen, making sure she had read the right document, because he had put his reasons with each requirement. They were still there, but Signum was waiting. "The first requirement is the most basic, they have to demonstrate proficiency at working together, and the best way to do that is through the Tactics One-Oh-One course. If a candidate can manage to do well there, they'll be able to work together with any of the Myrmidons. It will also give them a solid foundation of common tactics and habits that all Myrmidons share. I'll probably up that requirement to follow the whole course, as Zafira-sensei and I plan out each year. The guys passed the course last year, and are all keeping up with the new course we worked out over the summer.

"The second requirement, the duel with me monitored by Zafira-sensei or you, is to demonstrate individual skill and resilience. A soldier without the skills to defend his comrades is worse than useless, and any member of the Myrmidons has to be able to take care of themselves before they'll be able to watch a comrade's back. The duel will prove that they have the skills, and have not just been riding on their partners' skills. Again, the guys have already been evaluated on that basis last year, in February, and passed with flying colors.

"The last, the oath, is a little complicated. Just having the skills is not enough, any candidate has to be willing to give something up, give up a part of themselves for the group, thus the oath. 'To lay down my life for my fellows, to defend those who cannot defend themselves, to serve justice at all times.' Enough room for individual conscience, enough sacrifice to make anyone think twice about taking it."

"Have the other boys agreed to take that oath?"

Yussef nodded, "Yes, and believe me, it took a while to work out something we would all agree to. Marcel wanted something more specific to the Myrmidons, Luke just wanted a 'promise of aid' or something loose. What we ended up with is as much of a compromise as I am willing to allow. Anything looser than that, and I won't feel comfortable that whoever swears it will give as much of themselves to the Myrmidons as they should. If we're going to do this, we have to do it for real."

Signum nodded along as he spoke, "All right, I'll accept your reasons. But I want to talk to each of them alone before you follow through on that oath, make sure they all understand what it will mean."

"Thank you, Signum-sensei, that's what I was hoping for."

"I didn't hear anything about a boy's only club," Mercedes commented, "I'm guessing there's room for girls, too? This sounds like something I might be interested in."

"Yeah, like I said in your first tactics class, I learned that lesson last year. Laura would never have taken on Li solo if I'd included the girls from the start. I'll take anyone who can meet the standards, regardless of gender."

"Actually, Yussef, Laura's predicament last year is not something you have to feel guilty for," Signum countered. "She is not and never will be a soldier, Yussef, not a team player. Oh, she can and will work with people, but she never relies on anyone else. She would have faced Li alone with or without your teamwork training, and she probably would have hobbled your class, even without your mutual dislike. Couple of your classmates are the same way, so is Allison, and probably Juliet, as are certain of the current first-years. None of them are as bad as Laura, but still. Better to leave them to me than risk rendering your class ineffective. I'll talk with the other Myrmidons this week, make sure they understand the oath, and let you know my final decision Sunday."

Yussef held the door for Signum, and for Mercedes, falling into step next to his fellow student, strolling at a slower pace than their teacher. As soon as Signum was out of earshot he asked, "So, what are some of these great ideas you have for taking Laura down a peg or two?"

00000

Yuuno was not really certain why he was still hanging about in Egypt a week after speaking to Sauvageau, save that it was one of the more intriguing experiences he could remember from the past few years. The fact that he was once again witnessing and studying world-altering new magic while – for a change – not in fear for his life, was part of it, of course, as was the continued grudgingly friendly hospitality of the Circles. While they were patently uncomfortable with him, he found it was very easy to get the Containment mages to relax simply by asking questions and starting a debate. They were almost as bad about arguing abstruse points as academics from Midchilda.

After a few days, the working teams reluctantly agreed to allow him to participate briefly, giving him a further chance to study the ritual they were so painstakingly fulfilling. It was, as he had suspected, based upon theories long 'discredited' in Bureau space. The Circles had, apparently, followed up on ideas Yuuno's predecessors had dismissed as unworkable, simply because no one had told them the ideas were impossible and they were, as a group, too stubborn to give up on what they thought was a good idea. Their entire approach to magic, with its subtle and not-so-subtle differences from what he was used to, made an intriguing puzzle, even if he should have gone back to Headquarters and his official responsibilities.

Sauvageau had listened politely, and the two of them had hashed out a rough agreement, but then the man had simply disappeared, without initialing anything. One of his aides had remained long enough to tell Yuuno that a decision was 'pending', but had not given any time frame or even an idea of how likely any given outcome was. That departure should have sent him home, but Yuuno had not been able to resist sticking around to try and wheedle a few more secrets out of the Circle mages.

He had just finished one shift assisting with the ritual, and was stretching the kinks out while he made sure his replacement was settling smoothly into place, when motion caught his eye. It was a rapid motion, and all he caught, but he focused on where he had seen it, and sure enough, it appeared again, a distant figure popping up above a dune. _That's odd,_ he thought when a third appearance still showed the lone figure, a little closer, _no one should be wandering around out here alone. _Frowning at the intruder, more curious than anything else, he started walking towards the Bureau Enforcer watching over the sight.

The Bureau officially controlled the site, at Hayate's request, and provided security. Originally to keep non-mages from falling into the null, the staff had been increased when the Circles were allowed to begin their attempt to cleanse it, then decreased as the Circles demonstrated their expertise. Now, there was only a single squad watching the area, with assistance from the Circles, two mages at each work-site with two more floating between them to assist with watch schedules. At present, an ensign was standing watch at this site, and Yuuno made his way over.

Pointing off towards were he had seen the motion, he asked, "Ensign Reian, do you see that?"

The young man looked at him curiously, then pulled the goggles down off his forehead, tapping the small controls on the rim as he scanned the indicated direction. A moment later, he grunted, "I see it. Good eyes, sir. Single figure, coming this way... doesn't look human." Another few tapes, "Ugh, definitely not human. Can't tell how big, but it's humanoid, looks scaled, moving at a steady lope." The ensign switched to the local Arabic, "Excuse me, Hamad? Take a look off north-north-west. I'm not familiar with that thing, and wonder if you've seen it before?"

The swarthy young Circle mage stepped closer, and lifted a more primitive pair of binoculars to his eyes. It took him a little longer to find the approaching creature. "I don't recognize it," he said at first, slowly focusing the binoculars, "big bastard, scaled, claws on the hands, eyes are set wide, it's jumping as much as running..." He trailed off and visibly paled before whispering in a surprisingly frightened tone, "Allah be merciful." Then he was scrabbling at his harness, hauling out a radio, snapping the frequency selector over, and practically screaming, "All guards, this is North Guard Four! I have visual on a Seed of Leviathan inbound, repeat _visual _on a _Seed_, inbound on North Post! All guards to alert, get me backup and get the civilians moving!"

Yuuno blinked at him in surprise, then shifted that gaze to the radio as it exploded in a cacophony of yelling voices that he could not begin to comprehend. Hamad's grabbing him broke his surprise, as the Circle mage spun him around and shoved him back towards the ritual, "Get out of here! Get them out of here! Go!"

"But... but what's going on!"

"Get out of here!" Hamad was quite stuck on that point, pushing Yuuno again towards the ritual circle while staring wide-eyed over his shoulder. "That thing's dangerous, a monster from Atlantis! I don't know what it's doing loose now, but you have to get yourself and them out of here, quickly! No one's fought one of these things... ever! They're a myth, but all the myths are _bad_, now _run_!"

Hamad stopped pushing, turning back and bringing the radio back to his mouth. His free hand was un-slinging the submachinegun on his shoulder. "Yes, Central, confirm visual of a Seed inbound."

"Takamichi-san, sir," Reian said slowly, "I think he's got the right idea. There's another one out there now, a little further away. First one'll be here in a minute or two. It's at least two meters tall, sir, and I'm getting no magical readings off it at all, not even basic life signs. I think we need to be somewhere else."

Yuuno wanted to argue – no single creature, not even a pair of creatures, could be that bad – but Hamad's obvious fear, and the matching reactions from Hamad's fellow who came running over convinced him. "We'll teleport everyone out," Yuuno decided, "we can pull an emergency lift through the relays, from the nearest ship, the _Shiva_, isn't it?"

The ritual team proved surprisingly easy to wake, a matter of getting their leader's attention, then draining the ritual of power until they could safely relax their concentration. They were confused by the abrupt loss of focus, but the hurry with which their Ops guards were moving to form a battle-line to the north, and the less organized motion of their off-duty Containment fellows headed for vehicles, convinced them not to waste time with questions. They began moving for the vehicles, but the Seed got there first.

It disappeared from its leap-frogging progress when the first guard opened fire with a short, testing burst at a hundred yards. Two minutes later, it exploded out of the sand at the man's feet, his terrified shout and the patter of sand the only sounds. It grabbed him, savaging him brutally before throwing him aside, and Yuuno got his first good look at the thing.

It was easily two meters, despite a crouched posture, hunched over with a macabre head hanging between hulking shoulders. Its arms were long and powerfully muscled, its legs and torso even more so, all its limbs ending in digits as flexible as Yuuno's hands, which were in turn tipped with thick heavy claws. The entire thing was covered in gray scales without a trace of hair or skin, and slits on its shoulders shivered to reveal gill-like openings as it breathed. Worse than that was its face, a narrow protruding bullet-like shape, with huge black eyes set high and wide on its head, no nose, and a gaping lipless mouth lined with jagged teeth.

Despite its size and horrific appearance, Yuuno had a strange impression of emaciation, as if it was smaller than it should have been, wasted somehow. He was also rather calmer than the Circle mages, or even Ensign Reian. As the thing tossed its first victim aside, and the Circle guards opened fire, bullets ricocheting violently off its scaled hide, Yuuno kept his head, and carefully shaped a binding spell, a simple physical restraint to tie the thing up for capture. As soon as the green lines of energy touched the creature, though, they vanished, and the drain of the spell cut off with staggering abruptness. Yuuno blinked in surprise, then felt his breath freeze as the dark black gaze snapped towards him.

It lunged at him with frightening speed, but someone else tackled him, sending both of them tumbling to one side as the beast landed on empty sand, twisting about. A shield flicked into existence, and Yuuno recognized Ensign Reian's voice as he shouted, "Keep shooting!" The beast staggered this time as someone hit it with a heavier machine-gun as it rose from its landing crouch, and Yuuno finally saw its armored hide failing. The beast staggered, then dove into the sand sending up a spray of particles as it rapidly burrowed out of the line of fire.

Reian lifted him with a grip beneath his arms, and took to the air, which gave Yuuno a wider view. There were two more of the things in the camp, attacking the guard force seemingly at random. They were completely ignoring most of the guards' weapons, and no one was throwing any magic at them at all. The only thing the beasts seemed to fear was heavy machine-gun mounted on one of the jeeps, but it apparently lacked the power to actually kill one. It was obvious to Yuuno how this battle would turn out, and he made up his mind in mere moments.

"Reian, hold us down low," Yuuno ordered, shaping a tracking spell. "Low enough to get everyone within a hundred meters of me.

"Sir, that'll put us back in jump range."

"Not for long," Yuuno replied.

Reian grumbled unintelligibly, but complied, and by the time Yuuno finished his spell, everyone was in range, even the truck laden with passengers trying to swing wide and pick up the other survivors. The tracers of green energy washed out over the area, settling around each circle mage, giving them a slight greenish hue. Where the pulse touched one of the beasts, it faded and shifted, like water flowing around a rock, not touching but not dissipating. As soon as the pulse settled, Yuuno sent a telepathic message. _Shiva __transport control, this is Head Librarian Takamichi Yuuno. I require emergency teleport for all personnel at my location, by beacon! Alert med-bay, we have casualties!'_

The beautiful thing about standing protocols was, people tended to follow them. Requests from known officers for emergency teleport, especially with casualties involved, were almost completely automatic. It was just a matter of the person on communications duty triggering the teleport. Almost before he finished sending the order, he could see the blue-white energy of a Bureau ship's teleporter appearing around the perimeter, and he sighed in relief as the teleport pulled those he had marked, and left the beasts behind.

00000

"Are you all right, Yuuno-kun?"

"I'm fine, Hayate-chan," he answered from the wall-screen with a small grin, "just got a little shook up. No one was killed, though there are seven injured, most severely. One was friendly fire, I'm afraid, but it's understandable given the situation. Those things were terrifying. I still don't understand how they were able to move through the sand so quickly, or how they dissipated my spells."

Hayate relaxed slightly as his tone and focus confirmed his words. When she first learned of the attack, minutes after it occurred, she had been terrified she would have to explain to Nanoha how he had been injured. Now, she was just worried about the implications of the attack. "You say the Circle mages recognized them?"

"Sort of," Yuuno replied hesitantly. "I talked with Hamad afterwards, he had the first and best view of the creatures, and Fahad, the commander of the guard force. He says they are a mythical creation of Atlantis, their local equivalent to Al Hazred, called the Seed of Leviathan. Apparently it's one word in the original language. The creatures are one of the Circles' more common boogey-men, showing up in a lot of their legends. They are bigger and tougher than men, nearly immune to all forms of physical attack, and completely immune to magic. They apparently ground it out around themselves, much as Shamal designed Rafiq to, if I understand correctly. The Circles used to resort to some sort of siege weapons to kill them. The Lords of Light would keep them sealed in stasis containers of some sort, until unleashing the creatures on their enemies. Nothing on what it takes to make one, what they need to survive, or even how some could have survived so long, just what fighting them was supposed to be like. Apparently the Circles thought they destroyed the last of them thousands of years ago, so they don't teach their people beyond the legends.

"Most of what Hammad and Fahad told me came from that, with obvious mythical embellishment. Given what I saw today, though, I'm inclined to believe the worst. Those things took sub-machinegun bursts, without any magical shields, and barely even noticed. Even worse, the one I tried to bind not only dissipated my spell without doing anything, it noticed the spell, knew who cast it, and focused on me until Reiad got me out of reach. These things are killing machines, and I think they were specifically designed to kill _mages_."

"Which makes them an excellent weapon to use against Hughes' people, and against us," Zafira commented. "I wonder why they waited so long to unleash these things, and why they attacked Egypt instead of here, or Hughes."

"This may have been a test run," Hayate said, "or because Egypt is where cooperation between Hughes faction and ours is the most obvious."

"It might also have been a matter of transport," Yuuno said. "Given these things' immunity to magic, they can't be teleported, so the Revenants may have simply activated them and turned them loose. Or maybe it was because of the scale of the magic being performed. If the first one really did sense my spell, they may have simply been attracted to the most obvious source of active magic. We won't know until we find out where they came from and who sent them."

Hayate was going to reply, but Signum interrupted, _'Mistress? We have finished our initial check.'_ Hayate had dispatched Signum, Vita, Shamal, Laura and Yussef to the incident immediately after being informed. _'The other three workings are on alert, but report no attack, only the initial call. The attack site is a shambles, of course, but I can detect no trace of the creatures. Plenty of blood and bullets, tracks coming in from the north, but the creatures are gone.'_

_'Yuuno reported they burrowed underground before closing, make sure you watch for that.'_

_'We have not touched down,'_ Signum replied, _'Laura and Yussef remain at fifty meters, Vita and I at five. None of us can detect anything in the area, beyond traces of the ritual and, according to Laura, traces of two weaker spells, probably Yuuno's. As a side note, the shielding we have taught her against major dislocation effects is not sufficient. She is becoming physically ill, and I am having Tai-yu retrieve her with the school's teleporter.'_

_'Agreed,'_ Hayate said, feeling more than a little disappointed. They had trained her well, and believed that training to be sufficient, but it appeared that even with the Paradox's support, Laura was simply too sensitive to remain near dimensional dislocations. _'You have nothing else?'_

_'Just an extra enigma. Vita has found tracks from the beasts – too large to be human – and they lead directly into the null. It would appear that the creatures jumped into it. I would posit that was an effort on the part of whoever unleashed them to cut the trail. By preventing us from capturing and studying one, we are deprived of any information they may have contained.'_ Signum paused, then continued, _'I am touching down for a detailed analysis. Have you contacted Hughes yet?'_

_'Yes, I have. He has a team on its way, but has, as usual, declined our assistance,'_ Hayate replied, letting her annoyance with the Colonel through. _'He is sending a first team by road from Cairo, but they are only going to secure the site. Another team is coming to study it and respond, traveling by air from somewhere in America, but they will not be there for hours yet.'_

_'We will be long finished before them. Should we wait for them, or leave the site once we are finished?'_

_'Return as soon as possible, please,'_ Hayate decided after a moment, _'I am concerned about the possibility of more of these things being directed here.'_

_'We will return in an hour or so, then, Mistress.'_

_'Thank you, Signum.'_ She let the connection fade, and returned her attention to Yuuno. "Signum reports the constructs may have jumped into the null, but they are not present now. She will check the site over thoroughly, then return here. I will share her report, of course, but do you want a Bureau team on-site as well?"

"Admiral Aignu is putting together her enforcers now," Yuuno answered, "but we had to stabilize the wounded and calm the other Circle mages. They'll be going down once the Admiral is certain of her new guests."

"I'll warn Signum," Zafira said.

"I should go," Yuuno said, "I need to talk to Admiral Aignu, and to Headquarters."

"And to Nanoha," Hayate reminded him with a grin, able to joke a little now that she was certain he was all right, "don't forget to call your wife, or you might not have one anymore."

Yuuno smiled back, "yes, and to Nanoha. She's going to be annoyed with me, I think. I was supposed to be home a week ago, and now I've gone and gotten into a fight without her."

"She'll just be happy you're all right," Hayate reassured, then signed off the communications link. Leaning back in her chair, she glanced over the three other people gathered with her, considering them. Shamal looked worried, Noriko more curious, and Zafira was his usual inscrutable self leaning against the wall. "I'm worried, of course," she said after a moment, "these things could be unleashed against us. Thoughts on how to stop one?"

Noriko raised a hand, apparently out of habit, "Do we know if they can dissipate a shield? Rafiq can get through one, given time and a weakness to exploit, but he cannot break through a properly built shield in any reasonable time."

"No, we don't know," Hayate said, "and that is a good point. There is a difference between a well made shield and an attack or binding spell."

"I would not read too much into a comparison of Rafiq and these 'Seed of Leviathan'," Shamal said slowly. "His abilities are based on grounding out unstable and uncontrolled energies. He could dissipate Laura's Bolt From the Blue, most likely, but a binding?" Shamal shook her head, "Rafiq could not dissipate a binding, especially not one of Yuuno's."

"A better comparison would be Takashi's dragon form," Hayate said, tapping her fingers together as she thought, "perhaps this will convince him to finally let me study it. I wonder if Deva magic will affect these creatures?"

"Possibly," Noriko said, "Deva magic is different enough that defenses which dissipate normal magic may not dissipate your spells. We could perhaps test that with Rafiq, if Cid-chan is willing."

"Only very carefully," Shamal snapped, frowning slightly at Noriko, "we do not want to risk Rafiq, or Cid-chan." Noriko met her frown with a smile.

"We will be careful in all ways," Hayate reassured her, "especially with our students. Shamal, would you mind checking on Laura, to make sure she won't suffer any long-term effects from the null? Zafira, could you please take the Lieze twins and check the perimeter, especially the new wards? Check again for anyplace where we might have an opening, especially given the capabilities of these constructs."

"Yes, Mistress," the two Wolkenritter replied, Zafira holding the door for Shamal as she rose.

Noriko waited until they had left before asking, "What about me, Sensei?"

"You, Noriko, I want to get with Yussef and Laura, once both of them are back. I know you have all been training in how to protect yourselves and the campus, I want you to discuss ways to combat a foe you cannot use magic against. Work out a defense, for yourselves and for the campus. Any of us will be happy to help, but I would like to hear your ideas, instead of just what we already know. For the moment, you should probably go help Shamal with Laura. She is likely to be in poor spirits."

00000

Kaemon finally managed to get the sparring ring to himself early Wednesday morning, and was quite content progressing through the katas he already knew. Without another kendoist around, he could not do much more than maintain the basics, but he had too much pride in himself to let his skills go slack. So while he was still debating Signum's offer – despite a second session with Laura under Signum's supervision – he was quite happy to take the opportunity.

Naturally, he was just getting good and warmed up when Laura and Noriko came trotting down the Forbidden Road. Just as naturally, Laura spotted him, and picked up her pace, trotting over and jumping up to sit atop one of the columns. She swayed unsteadily when she landed, which made him pause. "You okay?"

She grimaced, "Yeah, I'll be fine in a bit. Just got too close to some wrongness, my shields didn't hold up like they're supposed to. I'd speak sharply to Sensei, 'cept she's got that big sword she likes to wave around when I make her mad."

"You probably shouldn't make her mad so often, then," Noriko advised, arriving a little behind her friend. "How are you doing, Kaemon?"

"I am fine," he said, rapidly debating the proper form of address, "hime-sama." It had been impossible for him not to recognize her, but he had so far managed to avoid the uncomfortable situation of having to talk to her directly. One did not, despite her classmates' easy familiarity, approach a member of the Imperial Family without clear invitation.

Noriko, however, actually glared at him for that. "My _name_ is _Noriko_."

Kaemon flinched, but rules were rules. "It would not be proper, hime-sama."

Laura laughed, "Ah, give it up, Riko-chan. He's a samurai wanna-be, you know how stuck up on the rules and traditions they were."

"They were never that bad," Noriko muttered, then relaxed her glare to give Kaemon an almost pleading look. "Please, Kaemon, we are fellow students here. My family is nothing to worry about, and we would all be far more comfortable without the formalities, ne?"

Kaemon was really uncomfortable with that request. It simply went against the grain to be so casual with such an exalted personage. But, at the same time, she was directly requesting that informality, which was no different from an order, which – given her identity and position – he was equally obliged to follow. So he compromised, "All right, Noriko-hime."

She sighed and fixed him with a long-suffering look, then shook her head. "You're worse than Hidan."

"I don't know who Hidan is," Kaemon said, "but there are limits to how disrespectful I can be, Noriko-hime, even at your request."

"Hidan's fun," Laura said, "bit stiff, and he said some mean things when I tried to prank him back in February, but he's fun. Just a bit of a stiff. You'd like him, K-chan."

"Please don't call me that," Kaemon said, then flushed when he realized how much he sounded like Noriko addressing him.

Sure enough, the princess jumped on that like a cat on a mouse, "Ha! You see what it's like? People calling you whatever they like, ignoring your heartfelt friendly requests? I'll make you a deal, Kaemon. You call me Noriko, just plain Noriko, and I won't call you K-chan."

"Convince Laura to stop calling me that, and I might agree," he muttered.

Noriko's face fell slightly. "Kuso, that's impossible. She still calls Takashi 'Ta-chan' to his face, sometimes."

Kaemon was surprised at the curse from the normally composed Noriko, but before he could respond to her, Laura jumped down off the pillar. "Oi, K-chan, since you're working out, how about another round? My bare hands against your big stick. Should be fun, ne?"

"Laura, you can barely stand up straight," Noriko reminded her.

"Ah, I'll just go all 'drunken master' on him."

"No," Noriko told her, "you will do no such thing. Shamal-baa-san said to do nothing strenuous the rest of the day, and she meant it."

Laura just laughed, "Oh, come one, Riko-chan! Sparring isn't 'strenuous', it's fun!"

"It is physically strenuous, and you were just throwing up in Hayate-sensei's bathroom not ten minutes ago. No sparring, not today." Laura gave her a pitiable pleading look, but Noriko shook her head and repeated, "No. I would, however, be willing to spar with you myself, Kaemon, if you were looking for a partner."

For a moment he could only blink at her in surprise, not having had the least clue that she was any sort of martial artist. "Is everyone here a fighter?"

"Depends on what you mean," Laura answered unhelpfully.

"Laura, be nice," Noriko told her. "Only Laura and I are actual martial artists, though Yussef is learning some swordsmanship to better utilize his device, and Zafira-sensei includes some in his class. I do it for fun and exercise, where Laura is painfully obsessed with it. If you mean 'fighter' in terms of people who will defend themselves, and people who will stand up for themselves, then I'm afraid that, yes, everyone here is a fighter. You are, too, Kaemon, else you would still be back in Osaka."

"Don't mind her philosophizing," Laura commented, "she's got this crazy theory that, in order to be any good at magic, you have to be a nutcase fanatic or something."

"Not a nutcase fanatic," Noriko protested, "just strong-willed and self-motivated, more so than is normal."

"That makes sense," Kaemon agreed, shrugging when Laura frowned at him. "We're manipulating energies with nothing more than our will, Laura-san. Got to have a strong will to pull that off, right? And I've noticed that none of us are... what was it Lotte-sensei said? 'Shrinking violets'?"

"The twins possibly," Noriko said.

"Nah, not Wrack and Ruin," Laura countered, waving one hand dismissively. "Those two are stubborn as all get out. Still pushing for me to give them Paradox's design specs, or _some _design specs. Thought about using the partial ones 'Na-chan put together over the summer, but neither of them's willing to share anymore."

"'Na-chan'?"

"More of her nicknames," Noriko explained. "Allina and Niranjana. They spend almost as much time together these days as the twins, so Laura thinks it is funny to refer to them as a single person."

"They are a single person," Laura muttered, "worse than my minions. I asked Allina for some notes in math that I missed, and half an hour later 'Jana gave 'em to me! Those two are just plain weird."

"Says the girl who likes to eat dinner upside down," Kaemon said slowly.

"Meh, whatever, that's just practice," Laura rambled, then returned to pouting at Noriko. "Come _ooonnn_, Riko-chan, can't I play just a little?"

"No."

Laura snarled something unintelligible and stalked off a little ways kicking at the ground. Kaemon watched her go and asked, "What happened to her, anyhow?"

"Went to help Sensei," Laura answered, "over-watch and high guard. Some nitwit attacked one of the teams cleaning up the Circles' mess in Egypt. Getting that close to the rift made me sick."

"Laura is especially sensitive to dimensional effects," Noriko added.

"Yup, that's me," Laura said, spinning in place to give him a wide-eyed innocent stare, hands clasped under her chin, "the sensitive, delicate, little flower. Aren't I cute?"

"Sickening, more like," Kaemon muttered without thinking. "They take you along on attacks, though?"

"Baka, _we_ didn't attack Egypt," Laura muttered, reverting to her more normal appearance.

"Hayate-sensei allows Yussef, Laura and I to assist," Noriko explained, "with our parents' permission, when they respond to certain events. They will not take us into live combat, but post-battle analysis and investigation, certainly. Usually we simply provide cover from on high, we don't get directly involved ourselves."

"Mom only agreed 'cause I threatened to go all Batman on the Circles if she didn't," Laura chuckled. "That would've been fun, but I think Sensei might've gotten a little miffed."

It took Kaemon a moment to recognize what she meant, after which realization he decided to get a little of his own back for how easily she tossed him around in sparring. "Batman? What's a batman?"

Laura twitched, then looked at him absolute disbelief. "You... you don't know who_ Batman is_?"

"Never heard of him," Kaemon shrugged. "Is he famous in America?"

Laura's mouth worked silently for a few seconds then she pitched a fit. "Gah! What sorta barbarian backwoods country is this? How can you not know who _Batman _is?! He's only the greatest superhero, _ever_! He's smarter, faster, tougher, got cooler gadgets than anyone else, he beats everybody! How can you not know Batman?! That's too much! You and me, K-chan – common room, ten minutes! You're gettin' an education, boy, if I have to beat it into you!" She stormed off, muttering imprecations about 'backwards uncultured barbarians', and Kaemon could not make up his mind if he should be insulted or laughing.

"Please forgive her," Noriko asked, "she is still unsteady from the anomaly in Egypt, and angry at herself for what she perceives as failing her favorite teacher."

Kaemon shrugged and, deciding to be amused, chuckled, "It's fine, Noriko-hime. She's cool, just a little loud."'

"You realize if you aren't in the girls' common room in ten minutes, she'll hunt you down and drag you there, ne?"

"Yeah, I figured she's like Signum-sensei that way." Noriko gave him a questioning look, so he continued, "she offered me the 'option' of extra lessons, like Laura's. Of course, every time I come near here when she's on campus, I get dragooned into a lesson, so the 'option' part appears to be an option between giving in gracefully or being sullen about it."

"You can just refuse, you know," Noriko said with a small smile, "it is permitted."

"How do you say 'no' to Signum-sensei?

"Politely. Now, if you'll excuse me, I am supposed to make sure she does nothing strenuous or magical until tomorrow. I'll see you in eight minutes."

Kaemon watched Noriko stroll along in Laura's wake, then dropped down to start packing away his gear. Thinking over the conversation, he found the contrast in the two girls' personalities striking, but interesting rather than offensive. Even Laura, about whom he had already heard many cautionary tales in the Boys' Wing, was more funny than scary. They were both good people, though, and quite plainly his superiors in position and experience. That train of thought crystallized in his mind as he began walking back towards the dorm himself. _They are what I want to be like,_ he realized. _They have what I came here to learn. Not that the sensei don't have it, but... senpai are infinitely easier to handle than sensei._ He gave a resigned sigh, "I guess I am stuck with Signum's training."

00000

Chen-chi claimed the chair between Luke and Jun, ignoring the former's distracted greeting and the latter's wave in favor of grinning at Esmeralda sitting across from them and twitching her head at Luke. The Spanish girl had made a comment in the showers about 'how cute that big Aussi is', and Chen-chi was having fun reminding her of it ever chance she got. Not that she had any intention of telling Luke, or anyone else, but it was fun to tease. _Five to one she asks him out by Christmas,_ Chen-chi thought, carefully filing the odds away for future use.

Settling into her chair and flipping open the old-fashioned paper notebook she had brought from home, she fished out a few bills from the front pocket, counting carefully, then divided them into two piles. A few pen-scratches noted the payout in the book, and then she reached out to tap both piles in front of her neighbors. "Luke, China-boy, your winnings, minus my ten percent. Laura was the first back, by over an hour."

That got Luke to finally look up, and got Jun's attention, though her year-mate was quite a bit less pleased. "Can you please not call me that, rebel? It's insulting."

"Yeah, but it gets you every time, so why not?"

"You really are a Laura clone," Luke commented as he counted the handful of yen, "one wasn't bad enough, now we've got four."

"Four?"

"The twins," Esmeralda reminded her, "Laura conscripted them, though. Chen-chi's like this naturally. And speaking of whom..." She pointed over her shoulder, and when Chen-chi turned to look, the twins were standing in the Library doors, looking about for someone.

Chen-chi turned back to face Esmeralda, "Man, those two give me the wiggins."

"It's a deliberate tactic," Luke told her. "I asked Shamal-baa-san about them the first couple of days. They play up the whole 'creepy twins' routine to keep people at a distance. They're just shy, like Cid-chan was last year."

"You should have heard Aria-sensei let into them for how bad their Latin is," Jun commented. "Well, as much as she ever 'lets into' anyone. 'If you're going to speak a language, speak it properly, don't mangle it. I'll see you two every Thursday after classes for proper lessons.' The looks on their faces was priceless."

"We are certain you could put a price on our appearance if you wanted to, Jun-san."

Everyone at the table flinched at that, especially Jun, who slowly turned in his seat. "Ah... hey, Rhys, Saeryn. Didn't notice you there."

They stared at him fixedly for a moment, then blinked once in unison, and turned to Chen-chi, which made her nervous in turn. "Can we speak with you, Chen-chi-san? Privately?"

She debated for a moment, then shrugged and nodded. Business here was done, and while she had planned to take advantage of having a second-year on hand to ask questions of while she studied, given how withdrawn the twins were, she figured whatever they wanted to talk about was no doubt going to be interesting. "Sure, let's grab one of the rooms upstairs."

The twins followed her in their usual silence, until one of them closed the door to the study-room behind them. "We wished to inquire about acquiring your assistance in a personal project," one said.

Chen-chi quirked an eyebrow at that, curious, but started with, "Right, first off, you two need name-tags or something. Which are you?"

They asked in unison, "Does it matter?"

"Duh, of course it matters. If I can't tell you two apart, how'm I supposed to hold a conversation with you? You two aren't one person, and it's rude to treat you like one. So, identification. How do people tell you apart?"

They stared at her for a few seconds, before one glanced at the other. A few incomprehensible mutterings later they turned back to her. "I am Saeryn," said the one Chen-chi was looking at, "the more willing to talk. Rhys prefers to observe. We do not know how to physically differentiate us, we have never bothered to try. Only Mother, Father and Laura-san can tell us apart."

"She cheats," Rhys muttered.

Chen-chi grinned at that, "Of course she does, she cheats at everything. So do I, it makes things so much easier! But, so long as I can tell you apart, I'm fine. Won't tell anyone else, either, if you don't want me to. But what is it you two want me to do?"

"We think you are most likely to be able to assist us in acquiring certain documents Laura-san, Noriko-san, and Yussef-san used last year," Saeryn told her, "possibly also with acquiring materials later in the semester. No one else in our class has the skills, and those second-years who have the skills have already declined to utilize them for us."

Convoluted though it was, the request was easy enough to decipher, and Chen-chi groaned mentally. It was a common mistake, one that she could not possibly follow through on here. "Look, I don't know what you two think you know about me, but I'm not some super-villain fixer-type or jail-house supplier-of-naughty-things. I don't have some long list of favors and debts I can call in or anything, not here. I'm just an opportunist. I make bets, buy into money-making schemes, that sort of thing. The only people I know who could get 'documents' that you can't reach just as easily would be Allina and Niranjana, and you just said they refused. Now, if you'd asked me back in Taipei, sure. I knew everyone at school and in my neighborhood, could figure out their prices and bargain them down, but here? Not for years yet."

"What about helping us to find something to convince Allina or Niranjana?" Rhys settled into a chair before continuing, "they must want something, and your denials aside, you are better equipped than we to obtain whatever it is they want."

Chen-chi just shook her head, "Yeah, afraid not. I've barely even talked to those two, and Allina's ridiculous. I can't follow half of what she says, it's all gibberish about computers. You figure out what they want, I'll think about lending a hand getting it, if you can make it worth my while. What's got you two so fired up, though? What are you after?"

Saeryn answered, "Documents on the construction of enhancement devices such as Laura-san's Paradox."

"You're researching devices? That's cool, but have you tried asking one of the sensei? They might just let you, you know."

"We wish to build them, not study them," Rhys informed her somewhat haughtily.

That gave Chen-chi pause, since from what she understood devices were dangerously difficult to control. But then, the twins had already demonstrated that they had excellent control, though their repertoire of spells was severely limited. _If anyone in the class can manage it, these two can, _she thought, and shrugged. "I still say you should ask one of the sensei."

"Not yet," the twins replied in unison.

Before they could say anything further, the door clicked open, making the twins flinch and shoot guilty and frightened looks towards it. Chen-chi relaxed ever-so-slightly when she saw it was only Tai-yu, not one of the regular teachers, but noticed that the twins stiffened. Tai-yu gave all three of them a small smile as she stepped in, then closed the door and leaned back against it. "Don't worry, girls, I'm not here to get you in trouble. I just wanted to ask you a question."

"We should check on Laura-san," the twins said, reverting to speaking in unison, rising to their feet.

"She's currently debating popular culture with Kaemon," Tai-yu told them, "she'll wait. What I wanted ask you is, why are the two of you already focused on building devices? Given your Circle origins, how can you be comfortable with the concept so soon?"

Chen-chi's eyes widened a little as the twins actually glared in anger – it was not their usual annoyed expression, but one of outright anger and distaste. Saeryn was outright sneering when she replied, "Yet here you are Journeywoman, assisting us in learning the very things the Circles were most afraid of."

"Force majeure," Tai-yu replied with a shrug, seemingly unconcerned by the twins' manifest hostility. "I am serving a sentence imposed by a legally empowered court for crimes I committed under the Circles' banner. I'm not entirely comfortable with it, but I am still working on Master Adept Li's overall goals as much as I can. By working with Hayate-san, I do what I can to prevent her and you from becoming the monsters the Circles fear. But your dislike for me does not explain why a pair of Circle apprentices so vigorously pursue the most obvious sign of this school's fallen nature. Quite the opposite, in fact."

The two glared at her for a few moments, and Rhys broke first. "Laura-san, Noriko-san and Yussef-san all built their devices in their first year. We have the control and the will, we do not see any reason we should be denied the attempt."

"Because we want to know why," Tai-yu replied. "Those three never made any secret of their reasons for wanting devices, however hard they tried to conceal their construction. All we know about you two is that you have the goal, but no obvious reasons. I'm being direct and asking you, giving you a chance to explain. Hayate-sama is thinking to use Laura and Noriko to ferret out the reason, and she will stymie your attempts at design and construction until she has an explanation. I'm not going to judge you, girls, in fact I'm trying to help you accomplish your goal safely."

"You may as well tell her," Chen-chi advised. "Refuse now, it'll just make them more suspicious. If they don't like what you tell them now, you can always work on damage control. Refuse to tell them anything, and they'll assume the worst."

Saeryn and Rhys glanced at her, then turned to each other and began muttering at each other. When they finally broke apart, Rhys again spoke first, giving Chen-chi a firm look, then glaring at Tai-yu. "You tell no one but Hayate-sensei. No one. We do not want pity, and will not stand for it."

Saeryn picked up the thread immediately, "Mother said some very unpleasant things to Father about this school. Father explained it to us… she is afraid, of this school and the changes it brings. She thinks it is dangerous, that Hayate-sensei will destroy the world. We wish to prove her wrong."

"By building devices? She'll assume you are lost to her completely," Tai-yu said.

The twins shook their head in unison, but again Saeryn spoke alone. "The devices are the most obvious symbol of what Mother and her friends fear. If we demonstrate that they can be controlled and used safely, she will understand and accept that."

"And you're thinking of building your devices, then going looking for her?"

Saeryn shook her head, "she will find us, eventually. Her friends will not leave Hayate-sensei in peace for very long."

Tai-yu stared at them for a few seconds, then shrugged, "Well, if that's your goal, that's your goal. I think you're wrong, your mother will not accept any reassurances about Hayate-sama, or she would have joined Hughes from the start. But if you want to try, it's worth a shot. I'll pass this on to Hayate-sama, and she'll make the final decision. Don't start anything before then."

Once she was gone, Chen-chi stood and strolled over to the door as well. "If you two get the go-ahead, let me know," she told the twins, "I'll lend a hand if you need one."

_I wonder how long it will take them,_ Chen-chi thought. _I know it took Laura and the rest a couple months, but the twins'll have support and help all the way through. Two months? One and a half? I'll have to ask Laura, see what I should set the odds at._ It never even occurred to her to tell anyone why the twins were building their devices.

00000

Arlain shifted ever so slightly as the distant figures took to the sky, watching through the spotter-scope as they spiraled higher and higher. They joined a third figure at fifty meters, and disappeared in a flash of purple. "Lead, this is One-One. Witches Two and Three and Warlock One have departed the scene. Teams Two and Three are clear to approach. Team One is moving in."

The bead in his left ear crackled slightly, then sounded in Schuster's voice, "Roger that, One-One. Two and Three are moving. Stay frosty."

"Understood," Arlain replied, before pushing himself to his feet. He did not go all the way up, but into a mid-range crouch, the compact assault rifle settling into the crook of his elbow, slowly sweeping back and forth. To his left and right, he detected the motion of two other figures rising from the sand, Jubal Early and Jake Law, his two subordinates in Team One, the Black Dogs' eyes. A gesture with his left hand sent Law forward, Early a few seconds behind him, then Arlain a few seconds after that, in a loose staggered line. Despite still being somewhat nervous about the two of them, Arlain's attention was entirely on scanning the area as they approached the site of battle.

Law was Chinese, from Asia Directorate, one of a handful of such members of the Moderns faction, and none of them were trusted. The entire Asia directorate had been deemed responsible for the Circles' current predicament by popular judgment. The fact that most of them had not only joined the Revenants, but formed some of the faction's most active and fanatical sects did little to help the common impression. While Law had not done anything to indicate any sympathy for the Revenants, and had indeed had some rather derogatory things to say about them, he was still Chinese, and still a product of Asia Directorate. The only reason Arlain trusted him at all was the fact that Law had managed to escape Asia Directorate HQ when the Black Witch – 'Warlock Three' in official Black Dog nomenclature – went critical, just before the Witch's people destroyed the area. His descriptions of the battle and obvious fear and respect for the witches were enough to convince Arlain of his sincerity.

Jubal Early was an entirely different prospect, and by far the more worrisome. Schuster had taken Arlain aside as soon as it became clear he would be leading Team One, and given him a very careful lecture on what to watch Early for, none of which had been reassuring. Arlain was quite certain that Jubal Early was insane – and not in a friendly-neighborhood-axe-murderer sort of way, either. The Frenchman was quiet as death at any time, utterly focused, and capable of some frighteningly effective head-games. He had also outright stated that the only reason he joined the Moderns was for a chance to hunt down other mages and engage in life-and-death battle against them, without being hunted himself.

Those two alone would have been enough to give any military man an itchy-trigger finger and a bad night's sleep. Working with both of them together was a recipe for ulcers. Unfortunately for Arlain's initial impulse to let someone else in some other unit (preferably in some different _century_) deal with them, they were both fiendishly good at their jobs. As the Black Dogs' eyes, it was their job to go in first, provide reconnaissance, and avoid being spotted in turn. Arlain was passably good at that, having only barely failed sniper school, and was good enough to keep up with Early and Law, but they were unbelievable. Back in Nevada, Early and Law had vanished into the brush, and the entirety of the Black Dogs had gone out looking for them. Four days later, the team had dragged itself back into the base, tired, dirty, and still lacking their forward scouts – who had been comfortably ensconced in the barracks lounge, freshly showered, beers in hand, having arrived two hours ahead of the main team, after shadowing the team for the entire duration of the exercise, with the log-books to prove it.

Now, today, the time for stealth was over. With the Witch's followers having returned whence they came, there was no one in the area they needed to fear or fool. In a way, Arlain was sorry about that. If the initial semi-panicked calls reported by the other three Egypt teams were true, and someone really had unleashed a Seed of Leviathan, Arlain would very much have liked to see it for himself. Only pitting himself against the Witch or her subordinates would have been better. He doubted the ancestors had anything on par with his team's modern firearms or their semi-licit magical enhancements, and he was somewhat interested to find out if his team would be able to actually take down something as tough as the Seed were supposed to be.

But there was nothing here but signs of past combat. As the three of them ghosted through the site, they found several traces of battle – blood stains, shreds of clothes and tents, a chaos of tracks in the desert – but the only signs of recent presence were recognizable as the two witches' footprints. A single truck was out of the vehicle park, bearing a couple of rents where something had clawed at the metal in an attempt to reach passengers, engine still idling with no one at the wheel.

When the other two teams arrived, Arlain met them at the edge of the fight area, leaving Early and Law to verify the tracks into the null fracture. Miguel Suarez out of the Columbian Army, Roger Taggart from the US Navy SEALS, and Ismael bin Mahmoud of the Syrian Army formed the Dogs' maneuver team, the most flexible combat element of the force. Trailing behind them came Kevin Kershaw from the US Army Rangers, Sasha Bogdanovich late of the Russian Spetznaz, and Uriel Thorngrave of the US Marines, forming the Dogs' heavy weapons team, with two machine guns and Bogdanovich's sniper rifle. Every one of them, including his own team, were Master rank, veterans of Circle Ops as well as their respective armed services. In all, despite the concerns about his own team, Arlain could only be impressed by the collection of skills and firepower, mundane and magical, and more than a little worried about living up to his own inclusion in that group.

"No contacts," He reported to Uriel, the team's ground-commander. "Traces of battle, but no one is here. Law has found traces of a large-area teleport, one he says is just like the Bureau systems he encountered in February. He thinks we'll never see them again, I think we'll get them back in a couple days once the Bureau's done asking questions."

Uriel quirked an eyebrow at him, "Any particular reason you think that?"

"We were attacked this time, not them," Arlain answered with a shrug, "they won't hold it against us just because they had people here, too."

"Probably right, but don't tell Law I said that," Uriel replied. "Any confirmation of what attacked the site?"

Arlian shook his head, "Not yet. The witches may have taken physical evidence with them, though. They were here for a while."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. They would have collected magical evidence. Anything physical would have been of secondary importance to them, especially if the Bureau teleported everyone out. The witches have easy access to the Bureau, so..."

A preliminary shiver of magic cut him off, and a moment later a massive blue ring of sigils appeared in the air. The Dogs reacted instantly, diving into cover and bringing weapons to bear as the ring doubled, the second rising into the air to leave glowing forms that resolved rapidly into human beings, all of them wearing an unfamiliar uniform and carrying short blade-tipped staves.

"Check arms," Uriel ordered as the new arrivals began to bring their devices to ready. He stood from his position half under the truck, and held out one hand to signal his troops, the other raised in peaceful gesture. "Team Three, stay at guard. Everyone else, gather 'round."

The mages remained in the air, fanning out to cover a wide area, before one of them called out, "Stand down and identify yourselves!"

Uriel stepped out a little further, "We are Circle mages, North American Ops, First Response Team Alpha. We are here at the orders of Grand Master Hughes to investigate the attack. You are the Bureau response team, yes?"

One member drifted lower, relaxing from his guard position. "Commander Akagi," He identified himself, "leader of _Shiva_'s Armed Enforcers. We responded to an attack upon Bureau and Circle personnel at this site, and have been dispatched to secure the area."

Uriel relaxed slightly, dropping his arms to his side and taking a waiting posture, "You got everyone out, then?"

Akagi nodded, "There were injuries, some of them quite severe, but they have all been stabilized. We will begin returning personnel as soon as we are certain the site is secure."

"It's as secure as it's going to be," Uriel said, gesturing to the south, "no sign of further aggressors, since the attackers appear to have jumped in there."

"How long have you been on site?"

"A few minutes. Miss Yagami had her people here before us, though, for a good hour or two. There's nothing here, unfortunately."

"One more question then. How did you get here so fast? Weren't you coming from someplace called Nevada, a day or so away?"

Arlain tensed at that, feeling the others tense, but Uriel just laughed, "You boys don't know everything about us. We're based out of Nevada. Never said we were coming from there."

Akagi stared at him for a moment, still frowning, then sighed, and shrugged. "We'll do a perimeter check of our own – nothing personal, it's procedure – and then start bringing people back. The wounded will have to wait a few days, until the Doc's sure they're safe to move. Don't argue with him, the man's got a habit of flaying people who go against his medical decisions."

Uriel shook his head, "Oh, we aren't worried about our wounded, not now we know where they are. We'll keep post here, until you're satisfied."

Arlain watched the mages spread out, and moved up with Miguel to stand next to Uriel. "You sure we shouldn't be... doing something, sir?"

"Not yet, Arlain," Uriel whispered back, "not yet. The Bureau's just that, a bureaucracy. They'll follow their rules, and we'll get our people back shortly. Once we get some survivors, we can start asking questions. We've got nothing but tracks of these things. The Egypt Ops people have found where they came up out of the Mediterranean, but the creatures avoided anyone and everyone until they got here. So, until we get our people back, we play nice. The Bureau will get what's coming to them, in due course."

00000

Seaotter: How many stories have you heard about hackers in the news? You don't hear about the ones people get away with. As to how hard it would be, you're right – devices are specifically calibrated for their users. But there is a canon way in, however difficult. The question is, can Allina and Niranjana find it & use it? Hacking a device won't be easy, if it's possible. And yes, I am having a blast writing the twins.

Baughn: The access route Allina and Niranjana will use to attempt their hacking is canon, though it is extremely questionable how useful that route will be, but more on that next chapter. Man, nobody likes that idea. Thank you for the comments on characterization, and I'm thinking I'll update the list on my author's page with the new OCs and some more information. As for what happened to the section breaks, FFN happened. Their latest 'upgrade' reformatted to replace the dashed-line section breaks with nothing. I've re-posted the chapters for this story with the new section breaks used here, and they seem to working. My apologies, I misunderstood the post about FFN's updates.

Kell Shock: As I told Baughn, I blame FFN for the missing section break. Frakking website 'upgrades'! You are entirely correct about the missing pro-noun, corrected. Chen-chi is the school bookie, yes, as further evidenced above, though the twins' mistake of thinking her a more general 'fixer' is also common. Laura's comment on the twins getting the PDA was based on Mister Burns, specifically to generate the sort of reaction you had:). Yussef is the busiest of the students, but he thrives on that, on being involved in everything and being constantly busy. Allina's blog would be interesting to read, but given her predilections, it's probably incomprehensible to anyone who doesn't think in binary. Laura's threat to the twins may not sound immediately threatening, but consider – dirt is everywhere, it's inescapable, all-pervasive, smothering – just imagine being buried alive. Yeah it's off the wall and obtuse, but that's Laura.

Derek Q.: Laura's not getting a free ride, but she's given more leeway than the other students are. Go back and re-read the first-day incident – Laura apologized immediately, and Mercedes actively rejected that apology. _That_ was what got everyone on her case. They were rougher on Mercedes than they would have been had she run into anyone else (except, probably, Cidela and Noriko) because it was Laura, but they would have been hard on Mercedes for doing that to anyone. Besides, she's quite obviously thinking of getting her own back, isn't she? The Circles are definitely regrouping, and learning, from Li's mistakes. I haven't done much with the national reactions because, frankly, it's too general a scale for the story right now. There are some hints coming up, but nation-level reactions won't be prominent for a while yet, if ever. Hughes did go to his superiors and explain (remember the attack in the subway station? That was in Washington DC, on his way to explain), but again, there will be more on those reactions later as it becomes plot-relevant. And quite frankly, the US has a better track record than most other nations out there for responding to provocations and threats, real or imagined. The difference between us and the rest of the world is, we're perfectly comfortable airing our dirty laundry in public. As for Yuuno's name, see the epilogue to Path of Vengeance, two stories ago. While I've nothing against yuri myself, I've just always been partial to Yuuno/Nanoha. Oh, and Hughes is Army, not Air Force – he's a soldier, not a caterer (and I'm a Navy brat, myself, so I reserve the right to joke about all branches of service).

TheWhiteMonk: I remember you're an historian. My apologies for offending you, it wasn't intentional, quite the opposite – 'Machiavellian' has always been far more insulting to me, carrying as it does common connotations of back-stabbing, underhanded manipulation, and dangerously selfish. 'Byzantine', in contrast, is artfully complicated, somewhat decadent, and overly-civilized. Yes, I know those stereotypes are historically inaccurate, but that is how the terms are popularly known. I know Byzantium had its fair share of underhanded schemes and backstabbing, but the common reputation is not as bad as Machiavelli's. To me, 'Machiavellian' is an insult, at _best_ a back-handed compliment, while 'Byzantine' is simply descriptive, and at _worst_ a back-handed compliment. I knew which book you meant, I was just saying the closest I've come to it was Sun Tzu's. Though I think I've read excerpts of The Prince, for a college class (on literature, of all things, if I recall correctly). The interactions of the second years and first years is going well, but there's more to come (such as Mercedes' attempt at payback).

Advent00: I'm glad you're enjoying this, and that you were looking forward to it. The second years' don't all have special skills, but here's a quick list: Laura has unpredictable creativity, quantum effects and sensing. Noriko has her Cascade and related effects, as well as an unflappable calm. Cidela is, of course, a healer. Yussef is a born leader. Noah is a master of force effects, Allison of stealth and hunting. Megan is a shapeshifter, Allina and Niranjana computer experts, Toushiro is skilled at buster spells. With the twins, Saeryn (the slightly more cerebral and talkative of the two) is Wrack, and Rhys (the slightly more physical and taciturn of the pair) is Ruin. Good luck telling them apart:).

Eternal-Longing: No problem on the timing, any review is a good review, after all. Laura's prank was simple, but she has more where that came from, much more. No problem on the explanation, I'm always willing to do that, unless it'll ruin future plot points. The twins reasons for building devices are they're own, as detailed above, not the Circles' – at least, as far as they know – who knows how deep the Circles' plans go?


	6. 05 Instigations

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-05 – Instigations-

As the second week of classes started its down-hill slope, Laura had to admit she was cautiously optimistic about the year. Her friends from last year were still friends, and not as twitchy and sappy as they had been towards the end of last year, Riko-chan was still Riko-chan, and Signum-sensei was still the greatest thing since Saturdays. Sure, Yu-chan was still annoying, and the Rich Girl was bidding fair to be a whinier version of Yu-chan... but he always would be, and _some_one had to follow in his footsteps. Even better, Laura had minions now, someone to spar with, and new victi... _people_... to practice her skills on.

The twins were proving to be her most entertaining challenge. They fought so hard against anything she got them to do, but the instant they agreed, flipped completely around and bulled through it with a relentless determination to get it over with. The fact that they complained the whole way just made it funnier, and poking holes in their 'we already know magic' airs was just downright hilarious. Kaemon was almost as much fun, though as of today he was no longer providing entertainment by fighting the inevitable. He still insisted he wanted to learn the sword, nothing more, but Laura was confident she could loosen him up. At least sparring with him was not as frustrating as sparring with Signum-sensei could get, though she suspected it was close to that bad for him.

Her only real problem at the moment was how boring classes were. Oh, sure the science stuff and the languages were fun, and magic was magic. But Hayate and Lotte were still essentially reviewing last year's studies prior to moving on, when they were not helping plan everyone else's devices, so there was nothing new. She had thought that the call to Egypt, especially coming so early in the year, would be a riot, but that had proven to be a bust.

She was actually seriously put out with herself for that. She had not felt a thing from Egypt since February, not a twitch, though Paradox had been maintaining steady shields against such things. She had expected those shields, reinforced by her training with Signum, would suffice, but the instant they arrived in Egypt, she could feel it, a singing nauseating emptiness that had almost made her lose her lunch before the teleport even finished. It had taken everything she had to stay airborne and not vomit then and there, and the failure was embarrassing and aggravating. Sure, Signum had been nothing but understanding, and so had everyone else, even Yussef, but that only made it worse.

She was still focused on that as she tromped up the steps into the dining hall, waving distractedly to the twins, Juliet, and Ichigo, studiously ignoring Yu-chan and Mercedes. She had been in the Library, looking for more information on how to protect herself from her ability to sense dislocations, but found herself thinking in circles. So she decided to get a snack, then hit the sparring ring – She thought she had seen Kaemon over there, and was idly looking forward to working out some frustrations on him. She wended her way through the tables, and stuck her head into the kitchen behind.

"Hi, Kobayashi-san," she called to the elderly woman puttering away in there, "mind if I snitch something to munch on?"

The tiny old Japanese woman looked up, glaring for a moment, then smiled and shook her head. "Anyone else, I'd send packing. You, Laura-chan, can snitch something. Small! Anyone else, you would be ruining your dinner, but you! You are too small, a little bit of fluff! You need more meat on your bones!"

Laura laughed at her fussing, "Thank you, Kobayashi-san! I can't help it though, it's mom's fault. Everyone on her side of the family's built like me." There was more to the 'lecture', as Laura put together a sandwich, but it was all good natured and delivered with a smile, despite the acerbic tone. Early last year the Kobayashi's had been friendly. After February, they had become much more so, and started treating all the kids like their own grandchildren, nagging and spoiling them by turns.

Sandwich on a plate in hand, Laura headed back out towards her room to get changed. She hesitated at the doors to the Girls' Wing, though, feeling a tingle of magic that should not have been there. Frowning, she put together a quick scan, and found the entire door laced with a well hidden but crude version of her own 'dye-job' spell, targeted on her specifically. Smirking, she looked back over her shoulder, "Nice try, Yu-chan, but you've gotta be better than that."

She disassembled his trap easily, and pushed the door open. As she stepped through, though, the door caught on something, not quite all the way open, and she tried to lunge backwards, just a second too late. The fall of water and ice crashed down over her head and shoulder, drenching her completely, the near-zero chill making her shriek and drop her sandwich. Stumbling back at least got her clear of the plummeting bucket, but she still could only stand there in shock for a minute, dripping icy water.

The dead silence behind her was broken after a few seconds by a single person clapping, and Laura turned around to find Mercedes smirking at her from the middle of the room, a towel under one arm. The Italian girl extended the towel, asking, "What's the matter, Laura? Fall in the pool?"

Laura realized instantly how they had gotten her, hiding a basic trap behind a complicated one. It was impressive enough she was surprised she had not thought of it, and resolved to add it to her list of tricks. So instead of yelling, she met Mercedes' smirk with one of her own. "You realize," Laura told her slowly, "this means war."

"Bring it on, little girl," Mercedes replied. "Bring. It. On."

"Wrack, Ruin, make sure she knows the rules," Laura ordered, then spun back around, scooped up her now-soggy sandwich, and marched to her room to get changed, plans and ideas for her payback already rolling through her mind. _Oooh, she's going to pay for this,_ Laura promised herself, _she's going to pay in __spades__. So much fun!_

00000

Vita met the small car at the overlook, inwardly debating if she should actually follow through on Hayate's orders. On the one hand, they were orders. On the other, Vita no more trusted the woman she was here to meet than she liked the color blue. To Vita, alliances and information or not, this was a major violation of the campus' security, which meant Hayate's security, and she was sorely tempted to take Graf Eisen to the taxi, consequences be damned.

But she managed to keep her more paranoid impulses under control as the taxi rolled to a halt, and a single figure in military uniform climbed out of the back. She looked around for a second, then closed the door and walked over to Vita. "Sergeant Teri Maunders, US Army," she said in English, "Circle Journeywoman. But you already knew that, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I knew that," Vita muttered. "You're shorter than I expected."

"So are you," Maunders shot back immediately with a small grin. "You want to carry on insulting each other, or shall we get this over with?"

Vita glared and growled for a second, then shoved off the drop-gate and jerked her head around. "Just follow the path, I'll be right behind you."

It was a long quiet walk, but to her disappointment, Maunders gave Vita no reason to summarily eject her from the campus. They reached the quad, and followed the path around to the Library, where Vita had to take the lead. She gestured to the kids present to keep studying, but shared a grimace with Allison. Hayate's office took far too long to reach.

Hayate was, naturally, significantly more polite than Vita had been, almost friendly. There was an undeniable tension, but unlike the last time a Circle mage was on campus, there was no feeling of imminent violence. There was no small talk, however, Hayte got right to the point, asking in English, "So tell me, Journeywoman, what is important enough to get you to request a meeting with me?"

Maunders settled a briefcase in her lap, opened it very slowly, and pulled out a manilla folder. She looked at it for a second, then reached out to set it on Hayate's desk. "That, Miss Yagami, is all the information immediately available on the Seed of Leviathan. It's not much, I'm afraid. Colonel Hughes has some people doing a deep-archives search, but most of the really old archives were in Europe and Asia. We have no access to the ones in Asia, and the ones in Europe were pretty thoroughly looted or hidden back in March and April, so I don't expect there'll be much more than what's in there.

"The bad news is, the Seed are _very _bad news. Magical immunity, scales equivalent to modern titanium, skin like Kevlar, bones like steel, and muscles like a ripped grizzly bear. Similar temperament to a wounded Grizzly as well, and about as controllable. Can breathe air up to a couple kilometers in altitude without any loss of function, and under water down to an indeterminate depth of at least forty meters. The Lords used to use them as shock-troops, unleash them before an attack, or when retreating. A very, very small number of weaknesses are known. Get something deep enough in the eye, you'll penetrate the brain, but good luck hitting a target that small moving that fast. Expose them to certain toxic gases, they'll die just like a human being. Pitch them off a very high cliff, and if they don't catch themselves on the way down, they'll die when they hit bottom. Other than that, hit them with siege weapons, stuff designed to bring down armored walls and the like. Basically, they're nearly impossible to kill, and do nothing _but _kill when they're let loose."

Flipping through the folder as Maunders spoke, Hayate asked, "Why are they called 'Seed' of Leviathan? Did the Lords have something worse?"

"Yes and no, and unfortunately this is where we hit what is essentially outright mythology." Maunders paused, closing her eyes to help her memory, "the Seed are supposedly a derivative, constructs based on prior creations. Those prior constructs were one-offs, experiments the Lords created for no better reason than to see if they could. Supposedly, the Seeds are based off one of their more extreme experiments, and the thing they created had to be launched into the sun to keep it from destroying Atlantis on its own. They took that thing's design, carved out what made it utterly uncontrollable and unstoppable, and what was left over became the Seed of Leviathan. The really nasty childhood stories say that a Seed, if left loose long enough, will mature into the actual Leviathan. But, like I said, that's essentially all mythology."

"You said that was the bad news," Vita quipped, "Is there any good news?"

Maunders gave her that smirk again, "yeah. There are no more Seed. The last was destroyed three hundred years ago, by Containment and Ops teams. The intel weenies guarantee it."

Vita managed to convert her laugh into a snort, catching the unstated joke about military intelligence. Hayate, however, asked, "Then what attacked the teams in Egypt?"

Maunders shrugged. "Based on the reports of everyone present, a trio of Seed. Only problem is, they can't exist. The Seed were one of the Lords' most devastating and hated weapons. Even more than their mages, we hated the Seed, and every one of those things was hunted down and killed. Every stasis chamber was destroyed, every growth facility razed, every Seed killed and burned to ashes. There was nothing left. There has not been a confirmed Seed sighting in three hundred years. Back then, what is thought to have been a Seed popped up in northern Russia, attacked some fishing villages along the western shore of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Locals still refer to it as 'the vengeance of the sea' or some such. Current thinking is the same as on the attack in Egypt – they came out of an undersea storage site our ancestors missed, woken by storm or earthquake. Before that, there are spotty records of a Seed slaughtering a Roman legion in Egypt, one decimating a city in China during their first empire, similar sketchy local legends. One at a time, they appear, attack villages and cities until killed, and are worked into local stories as monsters out of mythology. Partly our doing, of course, partly the same natural human cussedness that's kept the reaction to your announcement last March so understated.

"Our best bet, our operating hypothesis, is that someone in the Revenants found a cache under the Mediterranean, an old Atlantis outpost, and woke the Seed. It was probably someone in Containment who knew about where the site was, told his fellow Revenants, and they decided to wake them up to wreak a little havoc. Once woken, Seed are impossible to control, so their attack on the site in Egypt was probably just them tracking in on the magic. As for why they jumped into the fracture," she shrugged, "no clue. Those things are supposed to have major survival instincts, and be able to recognize magic. They may have been confused, disoriented, thought the null was more mages. They may have been programmed or driven, somehow. We just can't tell. No one ever sat one down and did a psych-eval. Everything we know about the Seed is from fighting them, from combat."

"Nothing else could have activated them?"

Maunders shook her head, "Nothing we know. We sure as hell wouldn't wake something like that. Even if you ignore the moral implications, it would be counter-productive. For Revenants, though... a lot of them were hard-line to begin with, and being on the loosing side of a civil war is making them desperate."

Vita could not resist asking, "Do they even realize it's the losing side?"

"They have to," Maunders answered, "there are more Moderns than Revenants, and thanks to your ultimatum, we're better organized. We don't have the operational capacity they do, but what we have is more efficient and the lack of numbers is being made good very quickly. Riding along right behind that, is you people. Even if the Revenants somehow manage to win the war within the Circles, they can't stand against you, and they know it."

"Which only makes them willing to try more extreme tactics," Hayate added. She shook her head, "Human beings are human beings, and the blind remain the blind. How likely is it that they can do this again? Do this someplace with more people?"

"Unknown at this time," Maunders said, then shrugged helplessly, "If you'd asked me last week, I'd've said it was flat out impossible they could do it once. A second time? I still say they can't, but we don't know if they have any more Atlantean sites under their control. Containment was always one of the more secretive divisions, for good reason. There are things they keep an eye on that literally cannot be destroyed, things that, if anyone tried to use them, would ravage the world. Hell, some of our own Containment people remain in close contact with some of the Revenants' Containment teams – they claim they're separate from the conflict, above it, in order to fulfill their responsibilities. There could very well be more Seed out there, and until we capture someone who knows where, we won't be able to tell."

Hayate sighed softly, "yet another unknown. Always reacting to another's attacks. And here I thought I was out of law enforcement."

Vita asked, before Hayate could get distracted, "You guys have any chance of capturing some of these Revenants? Sounds like we need intel, and fast."

"We have something in the works," Maunders replied. "Hughes has been concentrating our best Ops people into teams, the first of them was what met your troops at the Egypt site, seconded from an intercept in Cairo. The general brief for the teams is to capture if it can be safely done. Frankly, though, I'm not too concerned about Seed. There just can't be that many left."

"And we can't do anything about them, until they turn up," Hayate added.

"Well, no, unfortunately. But if any more do turn up," Maunders hesitated, then leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees, "Colonel Hughes mentioned this to me, but didn't specifically ask me to mention it to you, so he's trying to be subtle. Way back when, there were two ways of killing a Seed. One was, like I said, siege weapons. Get a lucky shot with a weapon built to crack walls, and even a Seed'll sit up and take notice. These days, we figure a tank gun or anti-tank missile should do the job, if we happen to have one handy wherever the construct attacks. The much riskier method was to use a wolfpack. The focal mage put all the available energies into physical enhancements, making themselves strong enough to overcome the Seed's inherent toughness. If she had enough power, and was quick enough, she could take the Seed down before its magical immunities drained her and left her vulnerable in turn."

"You think our devices would let us do the same," Vita said, unable to keep from grinning at the prospect. She turned to Hayate, trying to manage the pleading look Lotte used to get out of trouble, "Please say we can, Hayate-sama! Please?! I haven't had a real fight in ages!"

Hayate gave her an amused smile, "I'll think about it, Vita. Would the Colonel be willing to call us in if more Seed are encountered? We can probably respond faster than any of your own people, and I have to admit to a little curiosity myself as to how well we would fare against one of these. We have encountered enemies who were 'immune to magic' before, and there is almost always some weakness to magic, or to more direct assaults."

"I'll ask him," Maunders agreed, "and if I ever run into one of these things, believe you me, I'll be hitting every panic button I can find, whoever's on the other end of it."

"Is there anything more on Egypt?"

Maunders shook her head, "not specifically, no. Since I'm here, though," she pulled another, thicker, folder out of her briefcase, and set that on Hayate's desk. "The latest appreciations of the Revenants' operations and resources. A bit over my head, but it boils down to what I told you before. They've got more Ops, we've got more of everything else, and they're loosing what little public support they had. Strange as it may be, it seems the common man doesn't care for magic-fueled bombs going off in his back yard."

"No, I don't imagine he does," Hayate agreed absently, most of her attention on the folder. I take it there are no special causes for alarm?"

"Not right now," Maunders said, "just the usual."

"Well, then while you are here, I was wondering if you might be willing to answer a few questions?"

"Certainly, ma'am." Maunders chuckled, "Is there a Circle mage you've run into that you haven't 'asked a few questions' of?"

"Li."

Maunders blinked, then nodded once, "Touché. Ask away."

00000

Once Maunders was gone, Hayate leaned back in her chair, and dismissed the illusion covering the back of her office with a wave. The gray wall and comfortable chairs wavered and vanished, to reveal the exact same wall and chairs, one of them occupied by Tai-yu, the other by Takashi. Hayate rose from behind her desk and went to join them, floating a chair from a side wall to a comfortably close position. "Well?"

"She was honest enough about the Revenants' capabilities and desperation," Takashi said, "though I have to question her claims regarding the Seed. If ancient siege weapons were capable of killing them, the chemical-energy weapons these Terrans are so fond of should be more than enough to handle one, yet they patently failed."

"Don't forget, sir, that the siege weapons she mentioned were frequently magical artifacts in their own right, roughly equivalent to modern arms," Tai-yu countered hesitantly. "Larger weapons, armor-piercing weapons, those will certainly have better luck against a Seed. The guards in Egypt, though... their heaviest weapon was an old World War Two era light machine gun. The guards themselves carried sub-machine-guns only a little newer. Those are anti-infantry weapons, mostly light pistol rounds, and far from the most advanced versions of those. They wouldn't have the punch to handle modern body armor, let alone a Seed. And Journeywoman Maunders was not lying about the Seed. What she related was a good bit more realistic than the stories my parents told me." Tai-yu shivered all over, "they are supposed to be unstoppable killing machines, like Great White sharks given human intelligence and immunity to magic. If you do go up against one, Hayate-sama, do so carefully."

"We will, Tai-yu," Hayate promsied, "but what I meant was 'well, what do you think about _her_'? I have now met Maunders three times, and each time she has proven to be different than I expected. I originally thought her nothing but a military enlisted woman, the second time that she was a very efficient subordinate. This time, though... she did not sound like a Sergeant, she sounded more like an old officer."

"The American military trains all their personnel to a higher standard than is really necessary," Tai-yu said, "even the enlisted troops are expected to meet some surprising standards of education and ability. It makes some sense, given how reliant they are on their technology at all levels, but they tend to take it too far. Also, American career sergeants, such as Maunders, function as officers in their own right, in many ways. From the other direction, Journeywoman Maunders could also probably achieve Master rank, if she were not dividing her attentions between the Circles and the Army. Rank in the Circles, especially at the borders of each rank where she is, tend to be as much about dedication and connections as about actual strength. She has the strength for Master's rank, from what I could sense, but her skills and focus are lacking what would be necessary to pass the tests."

"She knew we were here," Takashi rumbled. Then waved off questions, "Oh, not Sandoval and I specifically, but she knew someone was here, and roughly where. Part of that could simply be logic, expecting you to have more guards than just Vita, and where the best places to hide them would be. But she was very much aware of Sandoval and I as two distinct presences. She was too tense, she kept her head moving to watch this area out of the corner of her eye, and she had energies ready for shields only _after _she came into the office. Good instincts.

"She was also, essentially, telling the truth. The Circles would not use something like the Seed, it's heresy to them. The Revenants are desperate enough to try 'fighting fire with fire', but not Hughes' sect. I don't see this changing our own plans and defenses, however. Further Seed attacks are too much an imponderable. We will simply have to keep their capabilities in mind, and make sure whoever we send to intervene in a situation has been informed of their existence and how to defeat one, on the off chance a Seed turns up."

"Sounds like a plan," Hayate said. "Tai-yu, could you please review what Maunders brought on the Seed, and put together a presentation on them? I'll want the children to see it as well, in case the Revenants find a way to loose some of these things here at the school."

Tai-yu nodded, "It should be ready by tomorrow, Ma'am."

"Takashi, continue monitoring the Circles. See if you cannot find a Revenant base before Hughes' people can. I want to be certain they aren't going to unleash any more Seed, or something worse."

Takashi smirked at her and bowed without rising, "Your will be done, My Lady." Then he faded out of view, making Tai-yu start.

Hayate huffed at that, annoyed that he had not actually been present. "Him and his holograms," she muttered. "I wanted to ask about studying his dragon form again." She stood from her chair as Tai-yu did, moving back to her desk. "How are things going with the girls? They haven't been giving you any trouble?"

Tai-yu shook her head, "Not at all, ma'am. It's taking some getting used to, watching over a dorm full of students, but they haven't given me any trouble. Aria-san and Lotte-san have been a great help."

"I keep telling you, Hayate is fine."

"Yes you do, ma'am."

00000

Looking about the empty dorm room, Allina frowned, wondering just where its normal occupant was. Shutting the door, she trotted down the hall, then down the stairs, giving the common room a quick once-over as she took the corner to the dining hall. She almost tripped over Mercedes, who was heating the carpet with Yussef's help for some strange reason, but filed that away for later inquiry. Niranjana was not in the dining hall, nor was she in the kitchen.

Juliet stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, "She's in the Library, helping Ekavir catch up with Signum-sensei's math class. How'd you two get separated, anyhow?"

"I wanted to ask Aria-sensei some questions about device-programming," Allina muttered, annoyed that Niranjana was somewhere else, "thanks for the directions!"

Trotting across the quad, Allina was a little surprise to find herself aggravated with Niranjana. It was the first time she could remember when something her friend did actually aggravated her. It was a novel – and distinctly unpleasant – experience. She soon let herself get distracted from it as thinking about Niranjana automatically brought along thoughts of their half-finished device designs. The answers Aria had given her that afternoon fit into place, if not how Allina had hoped, which meant the two of them could begin working on the main programming already, despite having yet to begin construction of the physical devices.

Their plan was fairly simple, compared to Laura's Paradox. Normal Midchildan style devices, with integrated communications systems, allowing the two devices to both act in unison, and – if they could find some way around Aria's answers – function as the super-computers they so resembled. If everything came together properly, the two of them would be able to directly utilize their devices to hack any computer in the world – including another mage's device.

The problem was, despite the design document she and Niranjana had studied over the summer, they still had a lot of work to do. As Hayate-sensei had indirectly told them the first day of classes this year, no one ever designed their devices to be networked. The closest anything they could find came to that was the diagnostic interfaces used to diagnose and repair damaged devices. While those interfaces were omnipresent, they lacked the bandwidth to allow for proper networking, and were heavily defended. That would be a problem trying to hack someone else's device, but more immediately, made it impossible to network their devices in the first place.

Now, armed with more information from Aria-sensei, including some specific books and articles to look up for more concrete information, Allina was eager to get moving again, even if they had only been 'stumped' for a couple days. The Library was a good place to start, but Allina found herself unaccountably disturbed by the idea of Niranjana having gone ahead without her.

She reached the Library, and sure enough, there was Niranjana, sitting at one of the main tables with Ekavir, a terminal placed where both could see it. Their backs were to the doors, but Allina could recognize that hair anywhere, and she felt a warm little bubble of happiness and unaccountable relief at seeing it again. Her annoyance faded pretty much instantly, but she decided to have a little fun with her sister anyhow. Ghosting up behind them as quiet as she could, counting on 'Jana being absorbed in what she was doing, Allina got right up behind her and – in her best imitation of Mãe about to explain why she was excruciatingly mad – said, "'Jana-chan. You disappeared on me, 'Jana-chan."

She was a little disappointed when Niranjana only straightened, turning slightly in her chair, and gave her a small smile. "Hello to you to, Allina-chan."

Allina pouted at that, "You're supposed to flinch, 'Jana-chan."

"Why?"

"Because you disappeared on me again."

Niranjana gave her a confused look, "I did not 'disappear on you'. You knew perfectly well all along that I was here in the Library. I told you I would meet you here."

Allina almost glared at her for that, "Oh, come on! Last year you pitched a fit if I turned a corner without you! I walked out front of the dorms to see Mãe and Pai, and you yelled at me! So I get to yell now." She could not help smiling at her impeccable logic.

Niranjana regained her smile, but shook her head. "No, you do not. These are completely different circumstances. You disappeared on me, I told you where I would be. Have a seat, Allina-chan, you can help me tutor Ekavir."

_There's something utterly wrong with her argument. There has to be,_ Allina thought, turning the debate over in her mind as she settled next to Niranjana. Try as she might, though, she could not come up with a counter before being distracted by a stack of math problems. She glanced them over, then grimaced, "Ick, math."

"And you call yourself a hacker," Niranjana chided.

"I am! It's just... if it isn't binary, why bother?"

"Because binary is just a trick to make math intelligible to a computer," Ekavir said, "and because I need to understand if I want to still be here next semester."

"Nah, Hayate-sensei wouldn't kick you out for flunking math," Allina said. "Signum-sensei would do something worse, though. Probably make you 'help' Laura train or something."

Ekavir's presence made her feel a little off-balance, an intrusion in what had become a comfortable routine. But Niranjana had offered to help him with math, which meant Allina was obliged to do the same. So she shuffled all her thoughts on device programming to the back of her mind, and poked fun at Ekavir while Niranjana reminded him what he had already learned. She was surprisingly happy when he took off to do other work, and she finally got Niranjana back on subject.

00000

Mariachi felt the sensor trigger, and looked up from his guitar to see one of the first-years exiting the Library. Raising one hand, he waved her over, "Got a minute, Esmeralda?"

She hesitated just a moment before strolling over, looking around for something. "Sure, what's up, senpai?"

The respectful term caused Mariachi's thoughts to stumble for a moment, then he grinned. "I dare you to call Laura that."

Esmeralda grinned back, "already did. She threatened to hit me if I did it again."

"Yeah, that's Laura all right. Demanding respect one second, then threatening the next if you give it to her. Listen... Vita-sensei says you're a dancer. Is she right?"

Esmeralda nodded, shifting her footing and hips like she was dancing right then, "Yeah. Not as much as you're a musician, but yeah." She got a far-away look in her eyes as she continued, "My mother's a Flamenco dancer, wants me to follow her footsteps. I want to, it'd be so lovely to perform all over Spain."

Mariachi could understand where the tone and look came from. While his musical aspirations had never been as grand as hers, he shared the feeling. "Yeah, I couldn't give up music for anything. Thing is," he resumed his interrupted playing, but this time focused on using the music to bring up his magic, forming a little sphere of light that shifted colors and pulsed in time with the music, "my magic interfaces with my music. The second draws out the first, and the first sounds like the second. I can _hear _magic, sort of. Not tunes or songs, but music all the same. No one else here has quite the same dedication to something that influences their magic as strongly. Sure, Laura's got her martial arts and Na-chan have their computers, but not to the degree of me and my magic."

Esmeralda settled to her knees next to him, giving him a questioning look. "You're wondering if my dancing will have a similar effect?"

"Not me, no. Vita-sensei and Hayate-sensei are, though. I thought I'd give you a heads up and, since I'll no doubt get dragooned into helping, see if you wanted to try a few experiments before you get accosted by Vita-sensei."

"That bad, huh?"

Mariachi nodded, as his tune continued, "Yeah. First time she caught me doing this, I wound up spending two hours in a workroom playing the same song over and over and over again. Not the most fun, though I did learn a lot."

"So, what," Esmeralda asked, "were you thinking of just having me dance around out here?"

"No, that would be a bad idea. I shouldn't even be doing this," he said, gesturing towards the guitar, "not outside a workroom, at least. No, I was thinking we'd grab a workroom, probably Noriko as well."

"Wouldn't a stereo be in order?"

"You don't think I can play the music?"

She shrugged, "just thought it would be easier."

Mariachi shook his head, "recorded music's never as good as live. I'll play, and watch, since I'm most likely to notice the shifts of magic. Noriko will just watch. Want to give it a try?"

She thought it over for a minute, eyes scanning over the quad, then nodded slowly. "Sure. At the least, it'll give me a chance to dance again. Can you play Flamenco, or will this be 'informal'?"

"I'll try it," Mariachi said, "but you'll have to forgive me if I mess it up. I've only played it a little. I prefer Mexican folk music, and old-school American Jazz and Rock. You know, heavy guitar music."

Esmeralda chuckled at that, "Don't be silly, senpai. Flamenco's all about guitars."

"Give me a second to find Noriko." Telepathy took focus, but he could manage it if he was not distracted. _'__Hime-sama? I was wondering if you've got an hour or so free to help Esmeralda and I with an experiment?'_

Noriko's reply was instant, _'__Not if you keep calling me that. The experiment Hayate-sensei mentioned?'_

_'Yeah, figure Workroom Six should be fine,'_ Mariachi told her.

_'__I'll meet you there in a few minutes,'_ Noriko agreed, _'__I just need finish transferring these notes.'_

Mariachi came out of trance to find Esmeralda rising to her feet. "Going somewhere?"

She gestured at her uniform, "If you think I'm dancing in this, you're crazy. The shoes alone would kill my ankles. I'll go get changed, meet you back here?"

"Workroom six, please. Noriko will meet us there in fifteen to twenty." While she headed back to the dorms, Mariachi stood himself and began strolling to the Classes Building. Given what Noriko was doing and what Esmeralda was going to do, he figured he had a good half hour before either of them found the workroom.

In the event, he was proven wrong. The two girls arrived together not ten minutes behind him, shortly after he finished setting the room's sensors to report to a display. He nodded to them, finalized the settings, then stepped away, swinging his guitar around front from where it had hung on his back.

"I figured we'd start with just dance," He told Esmeralda, "with me, Noriko and the sensors watching for any magic. If nothing happens, we'll try having you draw on some magic while dancing, see if that is any different."

"That might not be such a good idea, Mariachi," Noriko said. When he looked over to her, she continued, "Esmeralda doesn't have our experience at recognizing her own magic, yet. It would make more sense for you to show her how it works, do something with your music, and then have her see if dancing has the same effect for her. Give her an example and guide so she knows what she is supposed to feel."

Mariachi turned that over in his mind for a minute or so, then nodded slowly, "Right, I can see that. You two ready?" The two girls nodded, so he settled his guitar again, "we'll start with minor. It won't be a direct effect, just an enhancement."

He started slowly, just making up a song as he went, folding the music to fit his magic, and his magic to fit his music. Light gathered before him, and slowly coalesced into a dancing figure, similar to that Hayate had shown the world the previous spring, though his was somewhat larger and lacking in the clear lines of her illusion. Nonetheless, it moved with his music, and focused Esmeralda's attention.

After a minute of nothing but music, he managed to explain, "The basic illusion is formed normally – a human figure a meter tall. The motion is all music, though, the magic I put into the illusion reacting to the music I'm playing, more than any conscious decisions on my part. For instance, changing the style of music changes the dance."

He changed the song, from a personal creation to one with a more driving beat. As soft but nameless Mexican music flowed into Led Zeppelin's _Immigrant Song, _the dancing figure's pace accelerated, and the dance itself altered from gentle floating motions to a frenetic mixture of stamping turns and leaping acrobatics. Mariachi was actually impressed, both by how smooth the transition was, and how extreme the difference, though it was the first time he had done this.

"While I thank you for the compliment," Esmeralda said, "There's no way I can dance like _that_."

"_No_body can dance like that," Mariachi agreed with a chuckle, "the human spine doesn't bend that way. But you see how the music alters things? I made no changes in the actual spell, just the music. Feel anything in your own magic?"

"Just the urge to dance," Esmeralda answered, "but I feel that whenever there's good music playing."

Mariachi smiled at that, "Thanks, but focus on that urge. For me, last year, it was a matter of feeling the urge to draw on my magic when I was playing. See if that need to dance is at all related to your magic."

"Mind if I dance?"

"Always best to go with what you're most familiar with," Noriko advised. "A lot of what we came up with on our own last year was by doing that."

So Mariachi let the music flow to something closer to Esmeralda's preferred Flamenco. She stood and began moving through the steps, slowly at first, but gaining speed. It soon became apparent to Mariachi that, like him with music, she found it very easy to slip into a trance where there was nothing but the dance. He also noticed, shortly after Noriko, that Esmeralda's magic was, in fact, rising and shifting, but he could not tell if it was her dancing, or his music.

"Noriko," he whispered, trying not to break Esmeralda's trance, "the control panel next to me has a music set keyed up. Could you start it, and bring the volume up slowly?"

"Sure thing," she replied, "you'll fade out at the same time?"

"A little later," he replied, "have to make sure she doesn't notice."

Switching out the source of the music was a challenge. First he had to remember where the set he had put together started, then he had to change what he was playing to match that, and then slowly fade his own playing until it was just the computer's canned music for Esemeralda to dance to. He was impressed that it mostly worked, and he was just taking his fingers off the strings when Esmeralda whirled to a stop, blinking at him curiously.

"Why'd you stop?"

"To see if it was me or you who was activating your linker core," he explained.

"I'm afraid I couldn't tell," Noriko said. "We sensed some activity, but it faded before I could tell if it was all you, or his fault. I'd suggest, Esmeralda, that you dance again for a few minutes, to the list playing now, and we'll see if see if we can sense anything?"

It took another half an hour before Noriko was satisfied, alternating live and canned music. Unfortunately for Mariachi's hopes, she came to the conclusion that what they had sensed had only been a reaction to Mariachi's own music-magic. Dancing alone produced no discernible reaction in Esmeralda's magic, and she lacked the control, the focus and experience, to attempt deliberate use of her magic while dancing.

"Don't feel bad about it," Mariachi tried to reassure her. "Cid-chan and I are the only second-years who developed strange abilities like these."

"Oh, I'm not feeling bad at all," Esmeralda told him. "I had an excuse to dance, the magic would have been nice, but just dancing again is wonderful. But the special abilities, what about Laura? And doesn't Noah do something with shields, and Allison with stealth?"

"Laura's and Noah's abilities are fairly common," Noriko explained, "and so is Cid-chan's, though a gift as powerful as hers is vanishingly rare. But Hayate-sensei says no one has ever recorded anything like what Mariachi does."

"Someone has," Mariachi argued, "we just don't have the records here. Vita-sensei has a request in to the Infinity Library at the Bureau, but it's not mission-critical, so it'll be a while before someone gets around to it."

"You should revel in your uniqueness, Mariachi," Esmeralda countered, "it's something to be proud of."

He just shook his head, "not when I don't have the least clue what I'm doing. But... I've got some ideas from today. Your magic was reacting to my music, and I think Noriko's was as well. I need a couple weeks to think it over, but would both of you be willing for future experiments to see if that means anything?"

"Certainly," Noriko agreed.

"Hey, so long as I get to dance, you can play whatever you like," Esmeralda answered.

00000

Hughes looked up at the knock on his door, then nodded to the man standing there, waving him in. Leaning back in his chair, he asked, "So, Schuster, how'd they do on their first real mission?"

Edward Schuster settled lightly into one of the facing chairs, "Not bad, sir, though it wasn't as much of a test as we had planned. We completely missed the intercept in Cairo, unfortunately. But getting the men some exposure to Bureau personnel will help, in the long run. Uriel kept them in hand well enough, and from Sergeant Maunders' report, they gathered almost as much information from the initial site survey as the Witch's people did."

"Don't call her 'the Witch'," Hughes ordered. "Hayate may be dangerous and an enemy, but don't ever make the mistake of belittling her. Doing that to an enemy is a good way to underestimate them."

Edward gave him a jaundiced look, then shrugged and nodded, "Understood, sir. It helps the men, though. 'Hayate Yagami' brings up terrible memories of Asia and New Delhi. 'The Witch' is just a monster to be destroyed."

"Just don't call her that," Hughes repeated. "I understand all the mental tricks, Schuster, but that is one I disapprove of on every level. Dehumanizing an enemy removes any options for dealing with a human. You don't belittle someone you respect, but it's very easy to misjudge those you belittle. Speaking of respect, I'm curious... why did you leave Uriel in charge of the interception?"

Schuster shrugged, a little uncomfortably, "The Dogs may be my idea, but you gave me a bunch of lifers. I'm not military, and they all know it. If I tried to lead them in the field, they'd be watching me more than the Revenants, worrying about if I could hack it. I can, I've been conducting operations longer than some of them have been alive. But they wouldn't accept that, and I'd rather they don't have to deal with that. Dealing with that, earning their trust, will take too long. Uriel's doing a fine job as field leader, and this way I can keep an eye on the larger picture, let Uriel focus on the team's immediate tactics."

"Smart man," Hughes agreed.

"Worried about that, were you?"

"Somewhat, but not particularly. So long as you kept control of the team, I wouldn't have said anything, but your current arrangement is the better one. Regardless, I doubt that's what you came all the way up here to talk to me about. It's a long way to give me a report on an aborted op."

"Correct, sir," Schuster replied, "though it's not all that far. A lot closer than Washington."

Hughes grimaced, "The further away from Washington I can stay, the better. You wouldn't believe how fast I had to talk to convince the Joint Chiefs and those idiots in Congress not to tie me up at a desk back there, giving one meaningless briefing after another. Adept Rodriguez can handle the politicians, and Adept Heller can handle the Joint Chiefs. Which leaves me to handle whatever it is you're about to drop in my lap."

"I came to talk to you about this," Schuster smirked, and very carefully placed a file on Hughes' desk, nudging it across, "again."

Hughes grimaced again at the folder, with a single word on its tab: Shanghai. "I thought you wanted to blood the Dogs before taking on a serious target."

"No," Schuster shook his head, looking amused at Hughes' exasperation, "_you_ wanted to blood them. Uriel wanted to blood them. I think you gave me ten of the best soldiers in the Circles, and I want to use them."

"Shanghai's going to be a tough nut for one team," Hughes argued. "It's not their new headquarters, but the Revenants are firmly entrenched."

"True, but they're also exposed there. It's a busy port, with lots of traffic and immediate access to international air travel and deep water. Japan is relatively close, as is Russia. We can be in and out in under twenty-four hours, no one the wiser."

"No one except the Revenants and all of China," Hughes countered. "You know they'd pursue, no matter where you tried to lead them. Doubly true if you actually capture anyone."

"Let them," Schuster said, then chuckled. "The baseline plan there? Egress is by way of Kansai International Airport, a little ways south of Kyoto. Think the Wi... Yagami woman will sit back and watch if the Revenants try something in her front yard?"

"I think she's liable to do just that," Hughes said, "if she doesn't take you down herself. Hayate is not a forgiving enemy, Schuster. Don't ever forget what she did to Asia."

"I'm not, but the Revenants aren't going to forget either. Look at Law, the man talks about being tortured by rebels in Tibet a couple years ago without batting an eye, but practically passes out in a dead faint if you name one of Hayate's people. They won't dare follow us into Japan. The details are in the folder, however. Complete strike plan, including suggestions on how to handle Hayate's inevitable 'observers'."

Hughes stared at the folder for a few more seconds, then shook his head. "All right, I'll look it over." He pushed a button on his phone, "Addler? Step into my office for a second, please."

He didn't even have his finger off the button before the door opened and a young lieutenant stuck his head in, "You called, Colonel?"

"Mister Schuster here's going to be staying on base for a couple days. Could you please get him set up in the BOQ?"

"Certainly, Colonel. Whenever you're ready, Mister Schuster, I'll be at my desk just outside."

"He's certainly efficient," Schuster chuckled as the lieutenant disappeared again, closing the door silently.

"Too efficient," Hughes muttered, "I'm still breaking him in. Damn Pentagon took away my aide _and _my sergeant at the same time. Go ahead and get settled, reviewing this monstrosity's going to take me a while."

"Very good, Grand Master. I'll see you tomorrow for final approvals."

Hughes shook his head, but was chuckling as he said, "get out, before I decide you're being insubordinate."

Schuster left, and Hughes finally flipped open the folder to begin looking over the plan. Despite his comments, he knew that, if the plan had any solid reasoning behind it, he would probably approve the strike.

00000

Author's Reminder: Mãe is the Portuguese word for 'mother', Pai for father. They are used here as how Allina refers to her parents verbally & mentally, even when speaking other languages. Sort of like how I would be afraid for my life if I ever called my mother anything other than 'Mom':).

Author's Note: BOQ is military shorthand for 'Bachelor Officers Quarters', a pseudo-hotel most bases have for unmarried officers who do not or cannot live off base.

Author's Excuse: My apologies to all of you, but this is the last of the chapters I that I will be able to post 'every week', as I have been doing. I have chapter 6 half finished, but I've been working on it for a week and a half now. Just so you have a frame of reference, I started writing this story in the middle of December 2007, and I finished this chapter the fourth week of March 2008 – fourteen or fifteen weeks for five chapters. Not my best rate, but not my worst either. I will promise to work on this as quickly as I can do so without sacrificing the story, but that rate will unfortunately be variable. From here on out, my schedule for posting new chapters will be 'as finished'. Trust me, everything works about better that way, despite the inconveniences.

00000

Kell Shock: As usual, thanks for the typos, though I was right on one for a change! 'Initialed' is a diplomatic/business term (I've seen it used in both circumstances). It's what is done to an agreement when the negotiators are done with it, but it has not yet been formally approved. As an example, in American diplomacy, when the diplomats finish arguing out and writing the treaty, it is 'initialed' and sent back to Congress. It remains only 'initialed' until Congress passes it and the President signs it. There are other terms that mean the same thing, but that's the one I'm most familiar with. Mercedes will be working to join the Myrmidons, no sure if anyone will manage it in this story, but yeah, her revenge was not long in coming, was it? I'm generally familiar with the Strikers prologue manga, and some of those methods would work. But from what I gathered, the drones Nanoha and Fate fought were physically minor threats – a Seed is not 'minor' in any way, shape or form. Most of those who fought the Seed in the past were not flight-capable – remember, a Circle mage does not have a device to handle multi-tasking, so even if a said mage knew how to fly, they would just be abandoning those who could not fly. Admittedly, a Seed won't be much trouble for Hayate or her Knights, because they have experience against such things, but what about the students? Other than Noriko, Yussef and Laura, the best they could probably manage at present is to run. As for the magic immune dragon, allow me to direct you one Shimazu Takashi:)! Only problem is, he can't fly as a dragon. Thanks for the review!

TheWhiteMonk: The conspiracies have only just begun, only just begun. The twins definitely want both their parents around, but you're mostly right, it isn't going to be easy, though 'tragic' might be a bit far… depending on what I end up having the twins' mother involved in.

Eternal-Longing: I'll try to keep the twists comprehensible, though I've got a doozy planned – sneaking it in is going to be difficult. I'd apologize about the umber of OCs, but frankly that's what I have the most fun with. I've put an updated list in my profile, along with an updated timeline. I may eventually move those to a 'last chapter' of this story, but until then, the profile's easier to manipulate. As far as the difference between Allison and Allina – the former's taller, has red hair, and a temper fit to make me look calm and collected, the latter goes ga-ga over computer parts. I'm afraid that Zafira and Reinforce are falling victim to the number of characters. I've got a bit of a Catch-22, in that to make the school believable, I need new students, but that costs me time to focus on other characters. I'll do my best to give everyone their moment, but I am only human. Kell Shock's & your points are valid, but remember the Seed hit Circle mages first, and had surprise on their side. I'm afraid that, after this chapter here, my update schedule's going to fall back to the normal two weeks or so. I might get Chapter 6 up next week, but please don't hold it against me if it isn't.

Natimus Prime: I'd argue that the Seed aren't lizards, they're closer to sharks. As for larger – that would be what Maunders referenced above as being 'launched into the sun'. The Seed are definitely Atlantis remnants, but as for who set them loose? Read on, good sir, read on! I always was partial to Batman, but I'm afraid most of my exposure to him has been via the various cartoons, so I missed a lot of the classic comic book versions. Laura never would have functioned as 'Bat Girl', the boss put too many restrictions on her. She'd've made a great Harley Quinn, though…:). The twins' device project will progress through the story, though more peripherally than the Trio's project did in Academy Blues.

Advent00: no problem, always glad to answer questions. See my profile for a somewhat different list. The Seed were fun, to come up with and to write, but they'll get better, trust me.

notcroaker: You are correct, sir! The first person to guess here-in the route Allina and Niranjana will be using to attempt to hack another's device. I'm sorry you don't like that I married off Yuuno and Nanoha, but the dude deserves something, given how he got shafted in A's and Strikers. Besides, I just see him and Nanoha together me easily than Fate and Nanoha, since Yuuno's literally been there for Nanoha from the instant he met her. I know, I know, I can hear the screaming mob with pitch-forks and torches already, but we're all allowed our opinions. As for the relationship violating canon… I should have put up an AU warning in the summary, my apologies. Thanks for reviewing!

CrimsonDX: still haven't watched much of Strikers (I'm working on it, I swear!), but the short-hands easy to figure out, given the context. Yes, the Seed are nasty customers, but frankly, they don't represent that much of a technology/power leap from where Hayate (or even the Bureau) is right now. If she had a reason, Shamal could probably create something very similar to the Seed. As for the Seed jumping into the null, as mentioned 'in story above', what better way to hide the evidence? Without actual Seed to study, tracing them back or figuring out how or by whom they were activated is difficult to impossible. Chen-chi (It's not Chun-li! That's a Streetfighter character! Gah!) is going to be fun, especially later on when she gets her network up and running.

Baughn: In all honesty, I've yet to talk to anyone who's read The Prince that did _not_ think Machiavelli was a right bastard. I know how he was actually pretty good for his era, and how we can't judge past generations by modern standards, but his common reputation remains, however unfair to him it is. If I recall Chrono's explanation from the original Nanoha series, things can survive just fine in a null space – there's just no way to get _out_ of one.

SpaceBrotha: You almost missed this chapter, too:). For Chapter 03, Yussef's class for the first years was an extension of the one he put together for the boys in Academy Blues, thought remember, it's also teaching him (both how to teach, and how to keep disparate personalities working together smoothly). As for his first lesson, you're right, from a certain perspective – it was unfair of him, and splitting up might have worked against just him. But that lesson was set up to drive home a single point about teamwork, with a minor lesson that life's unfair. 'Rabbiting' is a general term for fleeing from a hunter without doing anything else, whether it's simply running fast, or bolting from cover to cover. Kaemon did stand up to Laura's challenge fairly well, but like Signum said, he did well for someone who's used to a different set of rules. Mercedes' thought on the twins was due to how they've been acting since arriving – always together, always dressed the same, always speaking in unison (or close enought to it, at least). Seeing one of them walking around with a knife would be like watching the creepy guy who talks to himself wandering about with one, not so much a common steak-knife as a bush-knife or other large blade. The 'seeing one alone' is entirely because Mercedes has never seen one without the other, so if there's only one, something is terribly wrong with reality. The twins in general are fairly rude and abrupt, because as their father mentioned, they have never been very social. They are really only used to dealing with each other and their parents, and they prefer people not being able to tell them apart, especially Rhys, so to them, it isn't rude if people can't differentiate them, it's comfortable. You are right that Laura's spoiled in her own way, but she's not irredeemable (though I will admit to being partial on her behalf). In a way, I'm glad you don't like her, it argues that I've made her more realistic (no one is liked by everyone, after all). The illusion was something Laura worked on over the summer, partly in furtherance of her oath not to kill, and partly as a tool for her pranks, but remember how basic an illusion – it was a strictly visual illusion, no scent, sound or touch. Visually complicated, yes, but nothing more. More on Allina's plan to hack a device above, you'll see she's already running into problems that will be difficult, at best, to overcome. For Chapter 04, Yussef's simply uncomfortable being alone with girls without a chaperon, though Laura will probably regret picking on him for that, his reaction would not be a good one. Laura's comeuppance was above, though you'll not it didn't turn out entirely the way Mercedes hoped. I would argue with you on the soldier/warrior point – a soldier is trained to kill at need, yes, but a warrior is generally trained only to kill (without the 'at need' part). Signum is teaching Laura better than that, yes, but warriors in general weren't the sorts to show mercy. As far as the Seed, your first impression was closer, but the head is more ape-like, and obviously, more info on them above. As far as anything surviving in the null, see my reply to Baughn – things go in, but nothing's ever come out. Hayate managed to injure Takashi's dragon form with a Deva magic attack, not normal magic, though you are right about how dangerous that form is in physical combat. No comment on your thoughts about Noriko's reaction to Kaemon's politeness, though regarding calling Shamal 'baa-san', no one has dared do it where she can hear it. Kaemon's comment about Batman was another example of someone giving Laura a taste of her own medicine – he was quite familiar with Batman, thought not as familiar as Laura, and just pulling her chain. The Black Dogs are complex, almost as much so as the students, though Early is probably the worst of the lot. As for how they think they can take the Bureau, to paraphrase Uriel, 'all in good time'. They don't plan to do it now, but all in due course. A long review, but thank you for the time!


	7. 06 Alliances

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-06 – Alliances-

Walking down the hall behind Hayate, Tia-yu found herself repeatedly going through an old exercise on mental calm, trying to find some of the serenity her superior so easily displayed. She had done the same following in Master Adept Li's footsteps, on the way to any number of briefings, and part of her was amused to find similarities between her prior and current superiors. Most of her was just plain nervous, however.

Tai-yu was rapidly becoming accustomed to the students, however odd they were and however dangerous what they already knew or were learning. She was even fairly comfortable with Hayate, though the artificial nature of the other instructors still made her uncomfortable. So her nerves were not due to who she was going to be speaking in front of, but rather due to the simple fact of giving a presentation.

"Relaxi, Tai-yu," Hayate said without looking back, "they are just students. You've been watching over them for two weeks now, this will be even easier."

"I've been keeping an eye on the girls in the dorm," Tai-yu countered, "not standing in front of a class!"

"They aren't dangerous," Hayate said, glancing back to give her a smile, "they will listen politely, ask questions slightly less politely, but they will not attack your, or ridicule you, or even give you a hard time. You have nothing to fear, I promise."

"Except tripping on my own two feet, forgetting what I'm going to say, somehow damaging sixteen young minds, the list is endless, ma'am."

Hayate's smile widened slightly, "as I said, nothing. Now, here we are," she put a hand on the classroom door, "be calm."

Tai-yu followed her into the classroom, closing the door gently behind them and pausing there as Hayate continued to the center of the room. Looking over the students, Tai-yu felt her nerves singing, but managed to keep that off her face, finding once again the practiced non-expression Li had expected from her in such situations. She had gotten to know these children over the past weeks, and that actually helped somewhat, but she was never comfortable on any sort of stage.

"Children," Hayate began, "As I told you yesterday, today Tai-yu will be teaching the class. She has a unique and valuable perspective on magic, both ours and the Circles', which all of you can learn from. I understand she has a lecture prepared, and would ask that you hold any questions until after she has finished that presentation. Tai-yu?"

Holding on to her impassive expression like a shield, she strode across the front of the room, "Thank you, Hayate-sama," she said as she reached the podium. She gave Hayate a small bow, then turned to the students, "and good afternoon to all of you, students." A chorus of replies came back, then she proceeded, "Hayate-sama has asked me to enlighten you as to the differences and similarities between the Academy's forms of magic, and the Circles'. Despite what you may believe, those differences are both more and less than they appear.

"Before any of you get it into your heads that I don't know enough about your style of magic, please remember that I was the personal aide of Master Adept Li Quan, one of the foremost mages in the Circles prior to his death. I not only reviewed every report he received on you and your teachers, I helped research and write half of them. I am quite familiar with the Midchildan style all of you have been taught, and becoming more familiar with the Velka style some of you have begun to pursue.

"One of the first things our research determined is that, despite somatic variations, Midchildan, Velkan and Circle magic are all based on the same fundamentals. Our power comes from the same place, similar spells are functionally the same, even the runes used are the same once, taking into account a few thousand years of divergent evolution. It is in application, areas of expertise, and specific manifestations that our schools of thought differ. At its most basic, our differences stem from our refusal to rely on artificial enhancements, and your avid embrace of such things. You all know some of our history, I will not bore you with repeating that, but that difference has resulted in different approaches to similar problems. Differences which, while great enough at first appearance, are minor enough to allow our styles to directly affect one another as if there were no differences. This underlying sameness is what allowed us to gather so much information on you last year, and what allowed you to be so successful in countering us."

"In contrast with the difference between the actual styles and structures of our magic, our approach to teaching is radically different. Hayate has based much of her training here on Midchildan methods, modified slightly to accommodate Japan's national educational standards. The Circles, in contrast, rely entirely on individual instruction. Our apprentices are, quite literally, apprentices, though our standards of behavior from and treatment of those apprentices is significantly greater than traditional apprenticeships. A Circle apprentice your ages spends only an hour or two a day on magic, that amount slowly increasing until they either leave their training behind, or pass the test to Journeyman rank. While training, the Circles emphasize precision and perfection over breadth and depth. Where you are all being taught a little bit of everything all at once, Circle mages are taught to perfect a single spell, before learning another."

Just speaking, getting into the rhythm of her presentation, settled Tai-yu's nerves far more than the mental exercises had managed. The relaxing of physical and mental tension let her get more into the groove, and soon she was just as calm and comfortable as always, part of her mind running the lecture on automatic while she observed her audience. Paging through slides contrasting the rarely-used Circle runes with those generated by Academy device-wielders, or displaying graphic analysis of similar spells, took little attention, though she noticed such graphics riveted her audience. She was a little surprised to find that, just as Hayate had promised, the students listened attentively, barely stirring during the half hour or so she spoke.

She found herself winding down sooner than she planned, due to the utter lack of interruption, ending with, "I will be showing you specific examples in the practical course this afternoon, with Lotte-san and Aria-san. For now, however, I can see several of you have questions on just the theoretical side, so let's start in on those, shall we? Natalia?" Of all the students, Natalia was the only one that made Tai-yu uncomfortable, the sight of the tattoo below her eye waking all sorts of bad memories from a lifetime of Circle training. But the girl herself was only a little odd, and Tai-yu managed to keep from showing any discomfort.

"The graphic you showed of the runes," Natalia said, leaning forward on her elbows, "it's true that both come from the same source?"

Tai-yu nodded, bringing that image back up on the projector, "Yes, so far as we can tell. The Circles learned the runes from the Lords of Light in Atlantis, while according to Hayate-sama, Midchildan and Velkan runes are all descended from Al Hazred runes. The fact that both are recognizable, indeed interchangeable, is actually the single most glaring similarity between our styles of magic, and solid evidence that the Lords of Light were either a survivors of, or a colony from, the Bureau's Al Hazred. That similarity is also one of the major proofs that our magic is all derived from a common origin." Tai-yu waited a second, but Natalia just relaxed back in her seat, scribbling notes in her PDA, so she moved on, "Noriko?"

"You said you've been studying Midchildan and Velkan magic," the princess asked, "but what about Deva magic? Have you made any comparisons there?"

"Noriko," Hayate said, trying to sound repressive around a small smile, "I told you, no Deva magic until I'm ready to teach it to someone, if ever."

Noriko gave her an innocent look, "But Sensei, I wasn't asking to be taught Deva magic, just to see if Tai-yu-sensei has run a comparison."

"I have studied Hayate-sama's magic to some extent," Tai-yu replied, "but not enough for a definitive comparison. Suffice to say, whatever it is she does, it is very powerful, and very strange. As far as I can tell, Deva magic, and the attendant runes, are a completely unique creation. Luke, you had a question?"

Luke hesitated a moment, glanced at Yussef, then asked, "During your lecture, you kept referring to 'our' style of magic and 'your' style of magic. Are you still a Circle mage?"

Tai-yu felt Hayate start as much as saw it, but answered before she could, "Of course I am. I worked hard for my rank, and have no intention of relinquishing it. Regardless of what the Circles as a whole think of my actions, I remain true to the oaths I took. I am not, and never will be, a Midchildan or Velkan mage, I will never wield a device. Since I think you're asking about my loyalties, though, while I am still loyal to the Circles, I am not suicidal. No matter what effort I might make to redeem myself, to the Circles I am a traitor, and should I fall within their reach again, they will most likely execute me. That makes Hayate-sama my best bet for continued survival, and staying in her good graces means teaching you. At the same time, that will give me a chance to prevent any of you from falling as the Circles fear you will."

Before she could pick someone else out Yussef asked, "how likely is another Circle attack on the school?"

"Raise your hand first, Yussef," she reminded him. When he did, she deliberately turned away, "You had another question, Noriko?"

Noriko glanced at Yussef. When he just grimaced, she said, "Judgment of the Fallen."

"Ah, that is a complicated question," Tai-yu replied with a frown. After taking a moment to gather her thoughts, "Keep in mind that I have not the strength, the skill, or the rank to have learned it, so my knowledge is entirely theoretical. What I do know is that the spell is likened to striking an electrical transformer with a lightning bolt. The spell essentially generates a self-sustaining overload in the target artifact, causing it to tear itself apart. As I said, however, I never learned it, so I am uncertain how, precisely, it goes about accomplishing that. Only Adepts and above were taught that spell, as only an Adept has the strength to accomplish it. Now, Yussef."

To his credit, he did not appear the least put out by her object lesson, merely asking, "How likely are the Circles to attack us again?"

"That is not exactly on topic, Yussef," Tai-yu chided.

"Maybe not," He agreed easily, "but you are the only Circle member we have to ask."

She watched him for a moment, thinking it over. "It is not likely, Yussef. It is _certain_. Whether the Moderns or Revenants win, in spite of Hayate-sama's warning, the Circles will attack again. The proper question is _when_, and who wins the civil war will determine that. If, through some misfortune, the Revenants win, they will attack the school within a few months, and will not let up until they are destroyed. If Hughes wins, that is an all together more dangerous proposition. Hughes will wait a few years, three or four I would guess, and make one attack in overwhelming force. Should that be turned back, he will retreat again and repeat."

"All of which we've told you before," Hayate added. "Tai-yu is here to discuss the Circles' magic, not their politics and strategies. Marcel, you had a question?"

"Is there any way to take down a wolfpack without fighting it directly? Those gave us more trouble last year than anything else."

Tia-yu rocked one hand, "Yes and no. If you know how to form a wolfpack, and I will show you that in the practical course this afternoon, there are certain methods you can use to disrupt the wolfpack. If the circle creating it is not skilled enough, those methods could permanently break the wolfpack, though a skilled circle could reduce or negate the interference. Grand Master Hughes unveiled a new method back in March, though I do not know how many mages know that spell, or even the basic theories as to how it works. If you can get at the circle creating the effect and break their concentration, the wolfpack will fail. If the mage at the focus of the spell is rendered unconscious, the spell will fail, also, of course, if the focal mage is killed. There are some who theorize that the wolfpack spell would be vulnerable to some sort of draining spell, drawing more energy through the spell than the circle can maintain, but I know of no successful attempts. From the Bureau side, a containment barrier of sufficient strength could sever the wolfpack from its focus, as could one of the bindings Signum-san mentioned to me, something called a 'Struggle Bind'.

"While all of those methods would work, keep in mind that wolfpacks are, by nature, focused on aggressive and skilled mages. They would not be sitting still while you tried to disassemble their support. You will only ever encounter a wolfpack under combat conditions, and whoever is chosen as the focus will be the best fighter in their circle. So, while there are ways of eliminating a wolfpack without fighting it, I'm afraid direct combat remains the most common and easiest method. I will show you some of the specific vulnerabilities this afternoon, mostly because anyone trained to create a wolfpack is trained to watch for those weaknesses, to protect themselves, if nothing else. Noah?"

"When we captured the mage back in February, the one who came into the workroom after Allison and I," he said slowly, "he was very surprised by how skilled we were. He seemed to think we'd barely be able to build a shield, and was completely floored by Allison's Cloak of Shades and my shields. Is that typical of Circle mages and expectations?"

Tai-yu nodded, "yes, in a general way. Oh, it won't be as great a shock to them now, not after February's demonstration, but it will be a long time before Circle mages in general adapt their thinking and expectations. For an easy example, take a look at the twins. I know for a fact that Laura has been deliberately disabusing them of the notion that they belong in the second-year magic classes, and she is right. They lack the range and depth of magical knowledge and skills to keep up with you. But Saeryn and Rhys are also right, because the skills they have are far better honed than any of yours were last December, better than any of their current classmates.

"As a slightly different example, I would be willing to bet that, in terms of actual spells known, each of you has a wider library than I do. But, I understand you have all had problems, both in February and in Yussef's Tactics course, casting those spells while 'under fire'. I have no such problems. I can honestly say that I cast my spells the exact same way, in exactly the same amount of time, with the same energy use and accuracy, whether I am in a workroom, or running for my life while dodging gunfire in the middle of a typhoon. I was part of a mission to retrieve some renegades in Hong Kong when a category three typhoon hit the city. So, you know more spells, but Circle mages are far more likely to get their spells off. Your flexibility and surprise will be your greatest assets, their's will be reliability and mutual support. Laura?"

"What about energy? How'll you Circle types match our devices, other than wolfpacks? You've gotta have more tricks up your sleeve."

"There is Hughes' new spell," Tai-yu reminded her, "which, if I understand it properly, disrupts _all _magic in its area of effect, though your devices will provide some hardening against that. There are also bindings, such as Gaia's Anchor and the like, possibly other unique spells such as Hughes'. If you prove resilient enough, and the Circles become desperate enough, there are even Atlantean machines still extant. Push the Circles hard enough, but don't eliminate them quickly enough, and someone may bring one out and attempt to use it. Your devices give you great power, or will once they are finished, but there are always ways around them. Skill, initiative, and ruthlessness will be your most reliable defenses."

"I'll leave that last one for the Circles, thanks," Laura quipped, then smirked, "and settle for just being better than all of them combined."

"Be careful, Laura," Hayate advised. "With a device, given her greater experience, Tai-yu would be able to stand against you. With a device, or a wolfpack, Hughes would give you a worse fight than Li did. Don't underestimate the Circles merely because their philosophy dispenses with artificial aides. Cid-chan, you had a question?"

"Rafiq does, actually," she replied, then asked, "about familiars. Do the Circles have anything like familiars?"

Tai-yu shook her head, trying to hide her own discomfort as the snake slid his head out of Cidela's shirt to stare at her. "No," she said after a moment, choosing her words carefully, "the Circles have nothing like familiars. To us, familiars are no different from your devices, artificial constructs using artificial magic. There is also the fact that, without some sort of augmentation, very few humans can sustain the energy necessary to maintain a familiar, let alone do anything else magical while sustaining the familiar. Most of you here could, but I could not."

"So they would destroy Rafiq, if they could?"

"I'm afraid so."

"We won't let them, Cid-chan," Noriko promised her, "we're better than that."

"Much better than that," Hayate agreed. "Even in the event the Circles prove able to defeat us, I have made arrangements for all of you, and your families, to be given safe haven by the Bureau. Not that you should need it, the Bureau will not react well to a Circle victory here, signatory world or not. You have another question, Natalia?"

Natalia visibly hesitated, but Tai-yu saw the girl was watching Hayate more than her. "Um... this probably won't go over well, but... do you have any examples of the Lords' writing? I was wondering how closely it matches Al Hazred's writing."

Ta-yu was surprised by that, having never given the writing any thought. The similarities in the modern forms of magic and runes were enough proof for her of their common origin. She glanced at Hayate, to find her giving Natalia a pensive frown. Reaching telepathically took an effort, it was still new to her, but she managed to ask, _'Should I tell her no, ma'am?'_

_'No, that won't be necessary,'_ Hayate replied slowly._ 'I think the damage there has already been done. Go ahead.'_

"I don't have any immediately available," Tai-yu answered Natalia, "but I can probably acquire a few samples. Give me a week or so, and I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, sensei," Natalia said, nodding to both Tai-yu and Hayate.

00000

Allison debated her options long and hard, before deciding on a course of action, waiting until the third week of classes. She knew generally what she wanted to do with her device, had known since before February. The problem was, as much detail as Hayate-sensei's reading assignments went into, she found herself desiring advice on the design as well as the construction and eventual use of it. What caused her dilemma was the fact that there were really only three people on campus who could provide that advice.

Signum and Vita were prime choices simply because of their long experience. But that same experience argued against them, as Allison was fairly certain that a lot of what she wanted to know was habit for them, instinct, because of how long they had been using their devices. Unfortunately, that meant her best bet for the sort of information she needed was... Laura. There were other considerations, including approachability and how busy the teachers appeared to be, but recent experience was the kicker for Allison.

Allison herself had no real problem with Laura. Sure, she was hyper, loud, and indiscriminate in her pranks, but she _was _indiscriminate, picking on everyone mostly equally, and undeniably skilled. But Laura had made it clear, without ever really saying so, that she was not the type to 'lend assistance'. Everyone had learned from Laura, but most of that had been at the hands of her pranks and leaps of logic, not from her advice or assistance. Watching Laura with the twins and Kaemon, however, demonstrated that she was actually capable of more traditional methods of sharing her knowledge, though even there it was plainly apparent she retained her old habits.

Which did not mean Allison was willing to attempt to bargain with Laura alone if she did not have to, so when, while tracking Laura down, she found Juliet first in the Library, Allison decided to dragoon her into the job as well. "Hey, Juliet, you talked to Laura yet?"

Looking up from her terminal, Juliet gave her a confused look. "About what?"

"Your device design. You told me you were going with a Velka device, right?"

Juliet nodded slowly, "Yeah, but... I wasn't going to ask Laura for help. I already talked to Vita-sensei."

"Gutsy," Allison complimented her, "but I'm looking for more recent experience, you know?"

"Sure," Juliet shrugged, "your funeral though."

"Our funeral," Allison countered, grinning at Juliet's sudden flat look. "Come on, lend me some moral support. You know Vita-sensei's going to send you to her eventually, anyhow."

Juliet grimaced at that, "Yeah, she's already suggested it. Only question is, how bad's it going to be?"

"Laura won't prank us," Allison said, trying to be reassuring, "not with the devices, at least."

"No, she's going to do to us just what she did to the twins," Juliet countered, then sighed. "Yeah, okay. You thinking of going now, or trying for safety in public and ask at dinner?"

"Now," Allison answered, "better to get it over with quick."

"Know where she is?"

Allison shook her head, "Found you on my way to find her."

Juliet snorted, "Yeah, just my luck. Hold on a second." She closed her eyes, and Allison caught just the faintest whisper of her voice, then Juliet was rising to her feet. "She's upstairs, in back. Aria-sensei's having her work on how she pulls in Hicho again."

Allison stood as well, falling into step with Juliet. "Still can't prove it's a wormhole, huh?"

Juliet shrugged, "Dunno. Laura has trouble remembering that two plus two equals four, let alone following that level of math long enough to prove or disprove what she's doing. On the other hand, she made it work, so there has to be something there."

"You know, Noah may be right," Allison mused. "Laura may be just what she named her device, a paradox. A living, breathing violation of the rules of Creation."

"Then why hasn't she gone boom?"

Allison flinched at that, remembering China, but nodded anyhow. China was perfectly understandable. "Paradox. Something that shouldn't exist, but does. You have to admit, that does describe a fair amount of what she pulls off."

"I don't have to admit anything," Juliet countered, "because I don't care how she pulls anything off, so long as she doesn't aim any of it in my direction. You see any of those reports on what she did to those photographers over the summer?" Juliet shuddered all over, "Man, that was mean."

Allison had seen the reports, and chuckled at the memory, "Oh, yeah, I saw lots of reports. Don't know what they're like in South Africa, but reports in the US think they're God's gift to God, that anything they want to do they're allowed to do and everyone should thank them for doing it. Did my heart good, seeing them get a taste of their own medicine. One of the few good things about the Reservation, most reporters are too scared of us weird natives to be really annoying."

"Yeah, none of them managed to find me over break," Juliet agreed, "I think Laura may have scared all of them, not just the American reporters." They continued debating the subject all the way to the back, only slightly curious if they were right, beyond their mutual relief at not having had to put up with media attention.

Laura herself was buried in the back of the second floor, right next to the restricted section in one of her preferred spots. She waved them over distractedly, scribbling notes on her PDA from the library terminal in front of her. "Just a sec, think I finally found the formula's Aria-sensei's looking for." She continued for another minute or so, then slumped back in her seat, reaching up to rub her eyes. "Gah, that woman's nuts! I've given her like ten different explanations, formulas and all, and every time, 'this isn't what you did, try again'. I'm going cross-eyed trying to figure out all these formulas after formulas!"

"You brought it on yourself, you know," Allison commented. "You keep going on about what an expert you are on physics, of course Aria-sensei's going to make you prove it."

"Physics I can do," Laura protested, then sneered at the terminal, "this is _math_, not physics." She straightened up, propping her elbows on the table, "so, what can I do for you girls? Juliet wasn't real specific when she asked for a minute of my oh so valuable time."

"Your idea," Juliet said, smirking just a little at Allison.

"Gee, thanks for your support," Allison muttered back, then mirrored Laura's pose. "I wanted to ask about your device," She waved one hand quickly as Laura's face darkened, "not any of the design particulars, just how you built it, how you use it. You know I want to put together a Velka device as well, and you built yours a lot more recently than anyone else around here."

Laura's face brightened into a full smile, "Oh, you're just looking for advice, huh? Slow-poke, you're falling behind."

Allison stared at her for a second before responding brilliantly, "Huh?"

"Shiro-chan already asked me as well, with Luke and Ichigo. Those three are thinking of building Velka devices, and wanted the same thing you do. They were quicker about it, though, asked me a couple days ago. You in as well, Julie-chan?"

"Only if you don't call me that," Juliet replied. "I've already got a session scheduled with Vita-sensei, but I wouldn't object to sitting in on Allison's."

Laura shook her head, "Nuh-uh, not 'Allison's'. All of you. I'm not up for a bunch of solo-sessions. I've got you kids, the twins, Kaemon, Sensei... if I tried to do solo-sessions for each of you, I'd go sane. You free Saturday afternoon? That's when I'm going to meet with the boys."

"Sure, I can be there," Allison agreed, smirking slightly as she pictured her parents' probable reaction to her easy agreement. _Nothing else to do around here on a Saturday, anyhow,_ she thought.

"I'll think about it," Juliet told them, "depends on when Vita-sensei wants to get together, and if Yussef wants us to help embarrass the new kids again on Sunday."

"It's cool, we'll be in Workroom Eight, if you're free," Laura said. "Now comes the real question, though. What's in it for me?"

Allison blinked, then glanced at Juliet, only to find her giving Laura an equally incredulous look. "Since when are you taking lessons in mercenary?"  
Laura giggled at the looks on their faces, "Man, I love getting that reaction! I'm not turning mercenary, I'm just offering a deal. I've got info you two want, and each of you has info I want. Same deal with the boys. Shiro-chan and Ichigo are going to let me in on their reactive shield, Luke's going to help me with math this year."

Allison tapped the table with a finger to get her attention, "I'm more confused than offended Laura. You're worlds away better than us at most classes, the only one I know you're having trouble with is math."

Laura nodded along, "Yes and no. I've got help for classes, but we're all cooking up craziness here. You, Juliet, have that trick you do to punch really hard. If it works sort of how I think, I want to see if I can adapt it to what I'm working on to replace Hicho."

"I thought you had that wooden naginata," Juliet half-said, half-argued.

"Oh, sure, I conned Dad into making it for me over the summer," Laura agreed. "That's fine as far as keeping myself in shape, keeping the forms up, but there's no way I'm taking that thing into battle. Too easy to hit too hard, or break it off and impale someone, or get it turned into a cloud of splinters that'll ruin _everyone's_ day. No, I'm thinking of something magical, something pure energy, that I can tune to match what I'm hitting. I can generate a form, but that's all I can get right now. I want to see how you enhance your fists, to see if I can adapt it for what I'm doing so that when I hit something, it'll actually get _hit_. I'll share, if you'd like it, especially once you get your device up and running."

Allison listened to them go back and forth a few more times, only half paying attention. She was mostly dreading what Laura wanted from her, though she was morally certain what that was. When the questions turned to specifics about Juliet's spell, she interrupted, "What about me, Laura? What did you want me to help you with?"

Laura's smile became positively evil. "You already know that, Allison. I want to become invisible. I want to learn the Cloak of Shades."

_Yup, that's what I was afraid of,_ Allison thought, _Little Miss Chaos getting over her biggest weakness. But I need her help, and how much more dangerous can she be? Ah, well, at least I've already got new wrinkles for it, she doesn't have to know about those._ Even as she thought it, Allison knew that would come back to haunt her, but she still answered, "You swear you'll never use it to prank me?"

Laura's smirk widened a little, "Sure, I swear I'll never use Cloak of Shades to prank you."

_I'm going to regret this, aren't I?_ "All right, Laura, I'll show you Cloak of Shades. But you're helping me with every step of my design, all the way to learning how to use it."

"You've got yourself a deal, Wilderness Girl."

00000

"So you think you can handle it, Luke?"

Luke shrugged, then nodded slowly, still looking uncomfortable. "Yeah, I guess, mate. But age aside, I've never been one for taking charge."

Yussef chuckled at that, "Age is the last thing any of us are going to worry about, Luke. Look at our teachers. Our headmistress is barely out of her teens, four of them are an unknown number of centuries old, two are in their thirties or forties but are familiars, and the only 'normal' one of the bunch is in her mid-twenties. Then there's us. As for taking charge or not, that's what I want to find out. Marcel's a good lieutenant, but he's flat out refused to be anything more. I need to know who's best to give a job to. So, you'll take Second Squad on Sunday?"

Luke nodded again, "Yeah, I guess. Mariachi, Shiro and Noah I can handle. I don't suppose I can talk you into a little pre-class info?"

"Not in a million years," Yussef chuckled again. "Mostly because I'm not certain of specifics yet, other than figuring out a back-up leader."

Further comments were forestalled by Didier asking from across the table, "Ano, excuse me, Yussef-san? May I speak with you for a minute?"

Considering that was probably the longest sentence he had heard from the younger boy, Yussef, nodded, "Sure, Didier. Luke, you mind?"

"Nah, it's cool," Luke said, sliding the PDA and books he had been reviewing into a pile, "I can figure the rest of the homework myself. Thanks, Yussef, and I'll give it a shot Sunday, just don't go expecting miracles."

Yussef watched him go, then turned back to Didier, to find the boy still standing across the table, watching Luke's departure. "You can sit, you know. No rules against it." Didier jumped, then looked around sheepishly as he settled gingerly into a chair. "What was it you wanted to talk about?"

"Ab... about your class?"

"Sure, what's up?" Yussef had a fair idea what was up, but wanted to make sure of it. Hayate had told him quite a bit about the first years, so he could prepare for teaching his Sunday course, but she and Shamal had told him significantly more about Didier. What they had to say, about his background and circumstances, had been worrisome and depressing, though he thought Didier was doing a good job of at least controlling his fears.

However he was performing in class, Didier looked terrified right now, as if expecting Yussef to come across the table and attack him. "Is there... could I... _not_... take your class?"

_Yup, dropping the class,_ Yussef thought. _Where's Noriko when I need her? This is going to take some careful wording._ "That is not a good idea, Didier. We learned the hard way last year that all of us have to be able to protect ourselves, and the best way to do that is protect each other."

"I... I know, but... I can't do it."

"Can't, or are too scared to try?"

Didier flinched, but Yussef just watched until the younger boy whispered, "Both."

"Can you tell me why? Is it something I'm doing, or something endemic to the course?"

"It... it reminds me of home. I don't like getting shot at, I don't like fighting. It..."

"I know about your mother," Yussef told him softly. Didier flinched, then stared at him with wide eyes, which rapidly narrowed into the first assertive emotion Yussef had ever seen on him – anger. "Relax," Yussef continued, "Hayate-sensei gave me the bare bones, she was worried my class would 'cause an adverse reaction', as she put it. I'm not asking about your mother, that is your personal loss and I will not intrude. What I am asking about is, are you having trouble because you're afraid of remembering it, or because you remember it too clearly? Depending on the problem, maybe I can fix it."

"The training stuff is fine," Didier said, "but the mazes... remind me of home. I get stuck there."

Yussef expected that, but still, "Funny, you do better there than anywhere else."

"It's habit, instinct," Didier answered. "You learn to duck quickly where I grew up, how to hide. It's not me, it's just reactions, things I don't want to remember."

Watching Didier shrink into himself, listening to his voice drop to a whisper, it was easy enough to make the decision. Now Yussef just had to figure out how to execute it. _He's not pulling my leg, he really can't handle the class. At least I don't have to do this part on my own,_ he thought. Telepathy was still stubbornly impossible for him, but the communications spell was old hat. "Hayate-sensei? Are you busy right now? Didier and I need to talk to you."

_'Come right up, Yussef,'_ she answered, _'I'm in my office.'_

Yussef stood to go, but Didier just sat there, staring at him with wide eyes again. "Relax," Yussef ordered, "you're not in any trouble, Didier. But we can't just leave you to fend for yourself. My class won't work for you, so we're going to talk to Hayate-sensei about arranging something else for you."

"I don't want to fight," Didier reminded him.

Yussef snorted, then gestured across the Library, "See her? Cid-chan doesn't know the first thing about fighting. You throw a punch at her, she's going to fall over, then ask why you did it. Thing is, according to Rafiq and Shamal-baa-san, the only reason she was caught back in February was because she was too good a person to leave her enemies to die, after she showed them why she doesn't need to know how to fight. There are ways to defend yourself without fighting, Didier, even if it's just knowing how to find friends and cover. I'm not up for teaching that sort of thing, I teach small unit combat. So, we go talk to Hayate-sensei, see what we can put together for you. It's this, or you keep taking my class," Yussef narrowed his own eyes, giving Didier a hard look, "and if you're in my class, you _will _be there every class. _No_body ditches on me."

Didier followed him, however reluctantly, up stairs and around to Hayate's office, where they found her waiting in the open door. "Come on in, boys. Let's see what we can work out, shall we?"

Once they were settled, Yussef gave her a brief explanation – most of which she was already aware of – and ended with, "I was thinking of having him train with Shamal-sensei or Aria-sensei, but I'm not sure which would be better."

"I think Shamal would work best," Hayate said. "She's very good at shields, better than the rest of the Wolkenritter. Lotte would be better for building on his existing agility, however. Neither would employ the same methods you do, Yussef, but they can give him the skills he need."

"I don't want to fight," Didier repeated.

"We understand that," Hayate reassured, "but not everyone in the world is a pacifist, Didier. There are times when such people will attack you for any reason from your magecraft, to your religion, to simply having the opportunity. Escaping the situation is an option, one you prefer and we will train you to best accomplish, but that will include protecting yourself."

Didier nodded slowly, coming out of his sunken posture a little, "All right, Hayate-sensei, I can see that. Could... could it be Shamal-sensei? Aria-sensei is a little intense."

Yussef barely managed not to laugh at that, but he did manage to limit his reaction to asking, "Intense? Aria-sensei?"

"She was chasing Lotte-sensei the other day. I... I don't know what she was saying, but..."

Yussef did laugh at that, remembering the incident. He had not witnessed the beginning of it, but had seen Aria chasing Lotte out of the Boy's Wing. Apparently sharing a suite again was causing some friction between the Lieze twins, though Yussef thought it was minor. Lotte had certainly been laughing as she ran, and he had not thought Aria looked all that angry. "I think you're misreading her," Yussef said, "but Shamal-sensei will work fine. Don't be a stranger, though. I know some good shields, Noah knows some better ones, and between us all the Myrmidons know how to get out of trouble."

"I'll talk with Shamal tonight," Hayate promised, "she'll arrange something with you in a day or so, okay?"

"Okay," Didier softly, "I don't have to take Yussef-san's class anymore?"

Hayate shook her head, "No, you don't."

"Thank you," he said with surprising fervor, then looked embarrassed, "I'm sorry, really, but..."

Yussef cut him off with a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Didier. We can't change what's happened to us in the past, only deal with our present."

"You should probably go think of what you're going to say to Shamal, though," Hayate advised. "She's probably going to expect you to have a more concrete idea of what you want to learn than you have right now."

Didier rose to his feet, "Yes, sensei, thank you." He bowed, and disappeared out the door, visibly relieved to have all that behind him.

Once the door closed, Hayate asked, "How are you going to handle this, Yussef?"

He shrugged, "Didier's personal beliefs conflict too greatly with what I am teaching. If any of the others object, it's my class, my rules. There are plenty of people out there who do not believe in violence, some of whom object to it... violently."

Hayate ginned at his joke, but pressed on, "I didn't mean your class, Yussef. This is the first student you have had drop your class. Given the fact that I seem to keep collecting students with tragic and traumatic pasts, I do not think he will be the last."

"It doesn't do good things for my ego," Yussef allowed, "but if he was having as much trouble now as he claims, two months from now he'd be having a complete breakdown. I'd rather have him drop the course. Also, if he is that badly off, and exposure training isn't hardening him, he would never be able to pass the course, let alone help with protecting his classmates. Let Shamal-sensei teach him how to protect himself. Given her personality, he'll soon be better at protecting his classmates than anyone else, he just won't be doing anything offensive. Also, like you said, he probably won't be the last. I'd be willing to bet the twins will try to drop the course shortly, probably Kaemon too, now that all three of them are working with Laura."

"Kaemon I agree will, but the twins? I thought they would excel at your class. Is someone giving them trouble, or is it something else?"

"Not trouble, no, it's just... they're exceptionally good at working _together_, sure," Yussef told her, "but not with anyone _else_. I think I've caught them building a mutual spell once, but pair them off with anyone but each other, and they suddenly go all fumble-fingered. I think it's deliberate, they seriously dislike being separated. They'll do the exercises well enough, but only just the minimum, and that with a lot of resistance."

"Ah, that," Hayate said, visibly relaxing. "I thought they might be having trouble with Mercedes, after their part in Laura's prank."

Yussef shook his head, "No, Mercedes isn't one to blame the messenger. She's not friendly with the twins, mind you, but she's not angry at them, either. Not where I can see, at least."

"If they aren't having any special problems with Mercedes, I don't think we'll let them drop your class. More than the others, they need to learn what you're teaching."

That made him concerned momentarily, "Sensei? Is there a threat to them specifically?"

Hayate shook her head slowly, "No, no, I wasn't talking about threats, Yussef. They need to learn how to interact with people other than each other. Laura's doing some of that, of course, but I would prefer they learn it from you as well. So, they'll stay in your class. Don't let them be on the same team, at all. If they don't start doing their best when working with others, call them on it, push them. They've never had to deal with peers, your class will teach them how to at least manage working together, if not socializing. And speaking of socializing, how is Mercedes' and Laura's challenge going?"

Yussef grimaced at that reminder, dreading the incipient explosion he knew was going to occur any day now. "Nowhere, yet. I've given Mercedes a standing offer of advice and assistance, mostly to try and keep her from going overboard, but neither of them has done anything but plan, so far. Unless Laura's tried something since lunch, I should say. Knowing her..."

Hayate smiled, "Yes, knowing her, anything could have happened. But no fights or anything?"

"I don't think it'll go that far," Yussef said. "I'll keep Mercedes in hand, and I'm fairly certain Signum-sensei and Noriko will do the same with Laura. The hard part's going to be keeping collateral damage down."

"Yes, but I'm confident you and Noriko can manage it." The smile faded, and Hayate turned serious again, "Shamal will talk to Didier tomorrow afternoon. Can you make some time for her at lunch? I'd like her to have a better idea of where he is."

"Certainly, ma'am."

Hayate grimaced at him, "What is it with everyone and calling me 'ma'am' all of a sudden? I'm not that old!"

"It might have something to do with all those orders you keep giving, Hayate-sensei. Or those gray hairs Laura's giving you."

"You've given me just as many as she has," Hayate countered. "On your way, before Marcel figures out where you disappeared to and yells at me about messing up your schedule."

00000

Hayate was barely settled at her desk after showing Yussef out when the phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, she quirked an eyebrow, then hit the speaker button. "Good afternoon, Grand Master, what can I do for you at this ridiculous hour? What is it there, almost midnight"

"Good evening to you, as well, Miss Yagami," Hughes replied. "It's not that bad, I was about to sack out. But one of my people has given me a plan for an attack on the Revenants, and I need to talk it over with you. Figured you'd be more likely to have time now, than earlier."

Hayate blinked at that, more than a little surprised. While the treaty Hughes had agreed to required him to keep her informed, that was normally handled through simple e-mails, reviewed by whichever of her staff had the watch. If he was calling her to discuss it, that meant it was either a major operation, aimed at Japan, or the result of an over-eager subordinate doing something without telling Hughes. "I'm listening, Colonel."

"Maunders delivered the latest appreciations, correct?"

"Yes, a few days ago."

"Have you read them? Specifically, the analysis of the Revenants' Shanghai facility?"

Hayate had to think for a minute before nodding, "I've scanned them. That is administrative, correct?"

"Actually, we have reason to believe it's Ghosts... some of the Intelligence people who went over to the Revenants. But it is exposed. It's the only facility they have in Shanghai, almost their only base on the Chinese coast. It's also one of their more public locations, there have been rumors in the local press about them, and in China, Shanghai's second only to Hong Kong for traffic in and out. All of that makes it a very risky place for the Revenants to have a facility, and one of my Ops people has put together a strike plan. I don't particularly care for it, he's banking too much on surprise and not planning for enough support, but that also means he can kick it off very quickly indeed. He wants authorization to make the strike the first week of October."

"That is fast," Hayate whispered, not at all happy with a Circle mage who was that efficient. "What precisely is he hoping to accomplish?"

"Prisoners. If the facility is mostly Ghosts, like we expect, they'll be able to provide us with near limitless intelligence on the Revenants. Even if it isn't, we should still be able to garner quite a lot of information."

Hayate thought it over carefully in silence for a few minutes. On the one hand, Shanghai was far too close to her children for her to be comfortable letting the Circles conduct the operation. It was painfully obvious where the attackers would route through, given that the entirety of China was Revenant territory. It would also give the Circles valuable experience in conducting more modern operations, hands-on experience that would make them exponentially more dangerous. On the other hand, it was a golden opportunity to damage and possibly cripple Revenant operations, would give Hughes and the other Moderns information they needed to help bring the civil war to a fast conclusion, which would thus reduce the bloodshed.

"I'll want observers," Hayate finally said, "they will watch from under stealth, but not interfere. If the mission turns sour, and your field commander requests it, they will extract your people, but that is all. Agreed?"

"Agreed, and thank you for the offer," Hughes answered. "I'm forwarding you the usual information, including the execute date. I'll include the contact information for the force commander, as well. Let me know if you have any objections, otherwise it will go off as scheduled."

"I appreciate this, Grand Master. Now go get some sleep, you need more of it, with all you are responsible for."

He chuckled at her, "Now if only those responsibilities would let me get that sleep. Good night, Miss Yagami."

He hung up, and Hayate reached for Signum. _'Hughes' people are getting ambitious,'_ she sent, then explained what Hughes had told her. _'Pick one of the children to take with you, please. Remember, and remind them, it will be observational only, but I want them to see how the Circles operate.'_

_'Yussef, I think,'_ Signum replied. _'This is more his area than Noriko's or Laura's. I'll review Hughes' notice, then inform him. Will this impact the trip to Kyoto?'_

_'Not unless they have to delay it, or it goes terribly wrong. If they do delay it, we will have to delay the trip. While you're gone, I'm going to want to be immediately available in case of problems.'_

_'Problems from a city full of Revenants? Whatever problems could they pose? Yussef and I can handle them, Mistress.'_

_'Forgive me if I worry,'_ Hayate told her, smiling at Signum's semi-sarcastic comment.

_'Worry is bad for you, Mistress.'_ Signum's amusing teasing was quite plain in her tone,_ 'You need to learn to relax. Ah! Excuse me, Kaemon just surprised Laura, I need to rescue him.'_

Hayate let the link fade, then brought up a display tuned to the sparring ring. Sure enough, Signum was holding the two students apart, though it was even odds, from what Hayate could tell, which of the children looked more surprised. "I wonder what he did," Hayate muttered, "and how he surprised her?"

Duty called, however, and she returned her attention to her work. Media questions, government questions, parent questions, random contacts the answering service wasn't sure how to handle, all of it wound up on her desk, on top of the same work from the year before making sure her school ran smoothly. Still, it was a far lighter load than some people she knew. _Ah, Chrono-kun, Hughes, how I do not envy either of you your exalted positions._

00000

Author's Note: Okay, my bad. I thought this chapter would take me longer than it did to finish. Tai-yu's presentation just kinda wrote itself over the course of an afternoon, though I'm still not entirely happy about it. Questions that needed to be answered, but I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, just can't think of how to do it better. Now you're all really in trouble, though, because I'm only just getting started on Chapter 07. So there!:)

00000

TheWhiteMonk: Hughes is definitely trying to play every side (there are more than two!), mostly because it's that or die. He has to deal with Revenants, Hayate, the Bureau, and several factions within the Moderns, such as the old regional and divisional hierarchies. Tai-yu's fairly open-minded, though you'll note from above she does have issues of her own. There will be more Circle members, but I won't vouch for their views. As for a Caslet or Yu, I'd argue that's what Hughes is! I'm thinking about national views, since several of you have asked, but they aren't currently supposed to become involved until later.

Eternal Longing: Apparently I spoke too soon... I know what you mean about getting bored with repeat villains, though Nanoha's always had good ones. As far as the music goes, I recommend all those songs, but trust me, I'm more than aware that my taste in music is frighteningly eclectic. And thanks for the PM on Ekavir, I also realized I forgot Tai-yu! There's nothing wrong with being a nit-picking perfectionist, we need all the company we can find.

Baughn: I like describing the new kids, it's part of what makes this fun for me. If I can pull of a plot as convoluted and complex as Jordan was working on, I will throw myself a massive party in celebration. Come on, last I heard he had half the series written, before his passing? He wasn't deliberately stringing everyone along, just writing a precedent-setting epic! You're right about how the maintenance links would not be active when the device isn't being fixed, but that's one of Allina's problems. The problem with what happened to Noriko is that it wasn't a programming attack, but a simple energy attack – good for destruction, but not for gaining control. Something similar might work, though, depending on the target mage.

Kell Shock: Yup, used the wrong name. Ulric was originally going to be his name, but Uriel fit better once I got his character figured out. Their similar enough, the original name keeps sneaking when I'm not paying attention. I'm afraid the Kobayashi's were just there as 'explanation', for how the mundane stuff was taken care of. Still not sure how big a part they'll play, but at least there's a name there now. With the Seed, remember their 'evolution' was pure myth, and their origin is mostly myth – the Circles know they were constructs, created by the Lords of Light, but the Circles never had (and were never interested in) specifics. But if I had a device, I'd be just as eager as Vita to take on a Seed – think of the challenge! Using mundane weapons, I think I'd prefer an M1 tank or a Hellfire missile – bazookas are too inaccurate for such a maneuverable target. You're right that dancers-as-mages is uncommon (and not happening here, I'm afraid), I'm actually rather fond of the idea. It wouldn't work well for combat, but it would be excellent for rituals, especially rituals with multiple mages. If I recall my pop-anthropology correctly, dance in general was started as magical rituals, anyhow. Lastly, no, I'm afraid Takashi can't fly as a dragon – If you'll remember back in Path of Vengeance, his wings were 'shredded', and Hayate can't heal that.

Natimus Prime: I'll do my best to keep the pranks fresh, but I'm rather fond of changing people's hair color:). The Seed should have known better than to jump in the null, but no one (available to Hughes and Hayate, at least) knows how they were controlled, so it may not have been willing. As far as Takashi visiting, he's a busy guy, and if you were him, would you go someplace you can't get out of in a hurry? Remember, even he and Hayate can't teleport through the school's barrier. And he did teach a course on magic, he taught Noriko and Yussef some of what they needed to build their devices!Allina and Niranjana are fun, and you're right about one route they will pursue, but that still runs into Baughn's objection – opening the repair port in the first place. Like I told Kell Shock, I like the idea of a dancer as a ritualist, since that's what dances were originally supposed to be. Won't necessarily see that, though, since Esmeralda doesn't have a refined talent like Mariachi. The Circles' understanding of the Bureau's scale is limited, yes, but remember, the Circles are stuck on one world. You're right about Hayate being the only one protecting them from the Bureau, but how much of that do they realize? Also, the only one talking about going after the Bureau is Uriel, and are you sure he doesn't just mean 'those Bureau personnel on Earth'?

notcroaker: Tai-yu's view of the US military is accurate, however, we do rely very heavily on our technological superiority, and that does require a greater degree of training and education than most other armies. I'm curious, though, I'm not sure what Hughes is 'harping' on?


	8. 07 The Pursuit of Power

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-07 – The Pursuit of Power-

Laura looked away from the ungainly collection of mechanical components when the door opened, then smiled at the twins. "Come on in, minions. Park yourselves over there," she waved to one side, "you're just here to watch, today."

Saeryn hesitated as Rhys closed the door, staring at the construct, "Is that...?"

"Yup. Don't touch, and Ruin, wipe that drool off your mouth, it's gross."

Rhys twitched, shifting from gazing at the construct to glaring at Laura, "I wasn't drooling!"

"Yes you were," Laura laughed, "now go wait over there. Observe, don't act. Show me you know how to be patient and what-not."

The door opened again before the twins could complain, and Allison almost ran into them. "Oi, what're you two doing here?"

"Moving," Laura told her, "off to the side, so they can quietly observe."

The twins moved reluctantly aside as Juliet followed Allison in. Allison moved over to Laura, "Is having them here wise? I mean, they're first-years, and they're Circle..."

Laura shrugged as Allison trailed off, "Wise? Never been accused of that before, but there's a first time for everything. They're pushing to build devices early, like Riko-chan, Yu-chan and I did. Better they have an idea what they're doing, if Hayate-sensei gives them permission, than they stumble into the same mistakes we made. So they're here to learn, by sitting quietly and watching!" The last was said in a much louder tone, accompanied by a glare aimed at Saeryn, who had been trying to sneak closer to the construct. Saeryn flinched, then grimaced and settled back to wait against the wall.

Luke, Toushiro and Ichigo were only a few seconds behind their classmates, and also gave the twins doubting looks. The boys kept their questions to themselves, though. Laura waited for Ichigo to close and lock the door before waving them all over, "Gather round, kids, while I dispense my unfathomable omnipotence." She arranged them in an arc in front of the construct, then asked, "Anyone know what you're looking at?"

Toushiro answered, "This is Paradox, isn't it?"

"Yup," Laura grunted, nodding, "this is my Paradox, my device. But that's not what I was looking for in an answer, Shiro-chan."

He grimaced, but stayed silent until Allison offered, "what were you looking for, then? I see a processor core, power channels, field generators, a cartridge chamber..."

"What you're looking at," Laura interrupted, still staring at Paradox, "is a weapon. All the fancy terms and grand ideals aside, that's what a Velka device is. Midchildan devices, Deva devices, variations on those types, they're all flexible in purpose, multi-function devices. A Velka device is not flexible, it is not multi-function, it exists solely for battle. It puts a great deal of power at your fingertips, but that power is wild and difficult to control, suitable only for combat, for attack over defense. That is what you all tell me you want to build, that is what I will help you build. But you have to understand that now, because down the line, it'll be very, very difficult to change your minds."

"You built one," Luke commented.

"Knowing full well what I was doing," Laura shot back. "Even now, I don't regret it. Paradox is a wonderful device, a reliable partner, and one of my proudest accomplishments. But I never thought for a second he was anything other than a weapon. I admit, that was not the reason I chose a Velka design. I wanted the power that went with the cartridges, I still want, _need_, the extra power. For a lot of my spells, a normal device can't provide the energy necessary in the time required."

"Schrodinger," Juliet muttered.

"Yeah, and Escher Step, Einstein's Prison, even Bolt From the Blue wouldn't work as well with a normal device," Laura added. "I've never made any secret of my goals, I aim to be the best battle-mage I can be. I'm going to show my brother, and the rest of the world, how it's done in the modern day, and a Velka device is the best to support me in that goal. But this is a weapon, guys, and I need to make sure you understand that before we go any further."

"We understand," Ichigo told her, "that's why we're here. The three of us, we're Myrmidon's, Laura. We 're Yussef's soldiers, and all three of us figure to continue in that role for a long time. We need the Velka devices to do that."

"Besides," Juliet said, "it's not like the Circles are going to leave us alone. You heard Tai-yu-sensei. When they come back, I want to be able to give a better showing than I managed last time. Like you said, a Velka device gives you more power."

Laura finally turned away from Paradox to look the five of them over, taking in their uniformly determined expressions. She stared them for a few seconds, then said, "Right, now that the boring stuff's over," she rested one hand on Paradox, "Lock and Load, you lazy bum, it's time to get some work done." The device flashed into white light, which then flowed over Laura, leaving her once again clad in black. "You kids asked me about how to build a Velka device, what you need to do, how to keep it all under control, what it's like. So, here's the first part. Sensei showed it to me last year, when I asked her if all the extra bits were necessary."

She reached mentally for the room controls, triggering the first display to come live. A screen flickered to life, then filled with a still image of a young man holding a spear-shaped device. "This, boys and girls, is what happens when you fail to take proper precautions when constructing your Velka device. This young twit took a Midchildan device, slapped on a cartridge system that is the heart of the Velka system, and went to town. Watch close, this is a single cartridge."

There was no sound, thankfully, but that was unnecessary. The base of the device racked back, a cartridge was ejected as steam blasted out of vents on the back of the blade... and the device detonated, shrapnel and fire blasting out of the central gem with terrible fury. "He survived," Laura explained, "barely. Took him a year to regain the use of his magic, another three to bind a device again, and the scars never faded. Admittedly, he was unlucky. It's technically possible to do what he did, it's just extremely dangerous. Takamichi-sensei, Testarossa-san, they managed it for a month or so, in combat no less. But if you aren't at their level, any flaw at all, any failure of a device component, and the energy of the cartridge, instead of being channeled into a spell, is liberated within the device. Then you get a lovely little boom, and nothing between it and you but what you're wearing."

"Damn," Allison muttered, "how much energy was that?"

"About what I put into a Positron Buster," Laura answered. "Imagine that going off in your face, inside your shields."

"More to the point," Luke said, "how do you prevent it?"

"Ridiculous amounts of redundant parts and reinforced conduits," Laura replied. "Remember how complicated Paradox looked? Half of that was redundant systems, reinforcements, and heavy-duty conduits. Your devices have to be similarly reinforced. On top of that, there's the programming to integrate and monitor all those reinforcements. Most devices have a lot of self-monitoring and self-repair built in for convenience, Velka devices require a mountain of such programming. Then there's the control you have to have in order to channel the energy when a cartridge releases. Like Lotte-sensei kept harping on last year, it's all a matter of control.

"As far as actually building one goes, it's just like a regular device, only more so. Lots more parts, extra connections, extra programming, all together 'more'."

"I thought Noriko's Deva device was more complicated," Ichigo protested.

Laura laughed, "Nah, Riko-chan doesn't have a Deva device, she's got a Midchildan device with delusions of grandeur."

"So says the campus queen of delusions," Ichigo countered.

"You know what a Deva device is?" Ichigo shook his head, so Laura continued, "it's the mage. Hayate-sensei, you remember her, right? She doesn't wield the Sword of Light and Reinforce, she _is_ the Sword and Staff. Yeah, that's right. Riko-chan's been walking around for a year now, telling anyone who'll listen that she wants to turn herself into a Borg, and you all think _I'm_ the crazy one."

"You are crazy," Allison muttered. "Noriko's lunacy doesn't make you sane."

Laura laughed, "Why thank you, Allison, I think that's the nicest thing anyone's said to me in ages!"

"Back on subject," Luke said, "building the device is fairly straight-forward, then? Just including the extra components?"

"No, but we'll get to that once your designs are finalized. I'm not asking for those, by the way, and won't. If you want me to look your design over, fine, but I'd suggest asking the teachers, they're more trustworthy than I am. Whatever you do, don't let Allina or Niranjana see your design. Don't let the twins, either, for that matter. For now, there are some specifics about designing your devices that you should know. Getting down to cases..."

00000

Noriko was only a little surprised when the other girls accosted her for help with their devices. She had talked with Laura about those she was helping, and knew that most of the boys would be asking for Yussef's help as well. That left Megan, Niranjana, Allina, Cid-chan, and Natalia with no other student to ask for help. Cid-chan could and probably would get help from Shamal, but she still wanted to talk things over with Noriko. The rest just wanted someone in their own age-group to talk to.

What did surprise Noriko was the sheer variety of the requests and, even stranger, the _necessities_. Allina and Niranjana were not particularly surprising, but their insistence that, whatever other people considered normal, they wanted their devices to be able to communicate with each other, was unsettling. Cid-chan, of course, need her device to amplify her strength and to give her the precision and power to handle more complicated injuries, but she also insisted that her device be able to 'coordinate' with Rafiq in controlling her still-hard-to-handle healing abilities. Niranjana needed her device to be operate on the older, more complicated, harder-to-predict Al Hazred runes. Megan needed a device that could stay with her through her shape-shifts and still function.

Best of all, each of them expected _Noriko _to tell them how to go about doing it.

Unlike Laura and Yussef, she was not willing to assemble her own 'mini-class', preferring to work with each of them one at a time. That also made it easier for her work out time for each of them, since she only had to match two schedules at a time, though she wondered if that would last. This early in the school year, no one had yet run into any personal problems, but Noriko had no doubt they would once again be bringing them to her, which she was somewhat looking forward to.

Saturday was her first round of meetings, and as the afternoon rolled around, she allowed herself a modicum of quiet pride at how well that had gone. Cid-chan was easy, of course, just a matter of finding the right references and paring them down to what she could actually use. Megan as almost as easy, as shape-changing mages were uncommon, but not unheard of, though most forbore to use devices precisely because of the difficulty Megan was faced with. Niranjana and Allina were more difficult, if only because they had been completely unable to find any record of anyone attempting what they were, and were thus falling back on creating ideas on their own. Niranjana wanted to simply adapt Terran wireless networking technologies, while Allina preferred something more exotic. Noriko had left them quietly debating that subject, content that they would find her again when they had it sorted out.

She spotted Natalia sitting at a workstation in the Library common, apparently asleep, visible eye closed and head resting on the seat-back. As Noriko crossed the room, though, she felt a strange stirring of subtle energies, and realized that Natalia's tattoo, just visible beneath her eye-patch, was glowing slightly. _What on Earth is she doing?_ "Natalia-chan?"

Natalia came out of her trance slowly, blinking rapidly for a second, "Ah, hello, Noriko-chan. Am I late? I'm sorry."

Noriko shook her head, "No, I'm a little early. What were you doing?"

"Meditating," Natalia answered.

"With magic? Meditating on what?"

"Yeah, a little magic." Natalia grimaced slightly, "I was thinking about my eye again. Thinking about death."

"Not the most pleasant of subjects," Noriko said with an unpleasant grimace of her own.

Natalia smiled wanly, "happens to all of us. Mother Morisovich said something like that, just before classes started. 'I've got a fatal disease, my little Natalia, it's called life.' She wants me to become a doctor, says with my eye, I can help those truly in danger first."

"That's not a bad idea, Natalia," Noriko said, "you really could make a huge difference."

The Russian shook her head slowly, "I looked up statistics. You know how long a cancer expert lasts? A few years, a decade if they're really detached. After that, they burn out, because too many of their patients die despite their best efforts. ER types are worse, they're lucky to last a year. I've got enough trouble with just the eye, when I'm not entirely positive it's right. If I had to see it come true, again and again..." Natalia trailed off, shaking her head, "no, not me. But, that's for later. You remember what I wanted to work on?"

"Altering the mage-runes, yup. We'll want to talk to Laura, actually, she's already working on that with Paradox, though she's completing the shift to Velka runes."

"I thought she started with those," Natalia half-said, half-asked.

"Iie," Noriko smiled at the memory, "she used Midchildan runes, simple and pre-packaged. All three of us did, we didn't know enough then to make any changes. Unlike you, no one taught us any runes until May and June."

"You wouldn't have wanted to learn this, anyhow," Natalia said. "Aria-sensei's warnings are proving far too true. You know what Tai-yu-sensei said? About how the runes are the same, like the magic? I've got a theory, that Midchilda and Earth share common runes not because they come from a common source, as because the runes themselves are fundamental to the magic. Every time I try a spell with the Midchildan runes Hayate-sensei started teaching us in May, there's some enhanced effect, more precise control, but with Al Hazred runes, the effect is so much greater."

"And you want to build that into your device? Have you spoken with Hayate-sensei? I know how unhappy she was with you last year, I don't want you getting in trouble again."

"She already said yes, though I don't think she was comfortable with it," Natalia answered, then brought out her PDA, paging through a few documents. "See? Written permission and everything." Sure enough, one short paragraph stated just that, with Hayate's digital signature on the bottom.

"Oh, good," Noriko sighed, "I was so not looking forward to arguing over that."

"I learned that lesson already," Natalia countered.

"Just making sure, we're all a bunch of stubborn prima-donnas, after all. So, any ideas how to do this, yet?"

"Unfortunately, no," Natalia said, shifting her seat closer to the terminal and resuming the programs that had paused while she meditated. "The runes a device uses are built into the core programming, and I don't see how to separate them."

"Hmmm, you can't, I don't think, but it is possible to _replace _them," Noriko said. "Laura's managing it, after all. She likened it to upgrading an operating system, changing underlying parts without replacing the whole. You're going to want to do something more complete than that, I think."

Noriko had half expected Natalia to be as reticent and strange as she had been for the second half of the previous year. But, aside from conjuring Sasha to retrieve books, Natalia proved to be both discerning and focused. The two of them plowed through several books and essays on device designs, gleaning information on how to alter the runic programing, in the process coming up with several potential routes to accomplish Natalia's goal.

Despite Natalia's apparent equanimity, when they wrapped it up for the day, Noriko was still somewhat uncomfortable with the idea. She just could not shake the feeling of strangeness that was such a part of Natalia, now.

00000

Setting up a conference call among twenty mages, across four timezones, on a Saturday morning was difficult, but that was what Hughes saddled himself with an aide for, after all. So at the time noted in his calendar, he was sitting at his desk, picking up call after call, until the entire team was waiting. "All right, Rodriguez, Heller, everyone's here. Give them the bad news."

"I'm not so sure it is bad news, Grand Master," Heller replied, "just not particularly _good _news."

"It came out of Washington," Hughes told him, "by definition, any news out of Washington is bad news."

"Joking aside," one of the guests interrupted, "can we please get to the point? I've got too much else to do today to waste time."

"Relax, Senator Thomas," Heller told him, "we're getting there. Rick, would you care to give them your side first?"

"Thanks, David," Rodriguez said, then paused for a second. "As you all know, I've been working with the US Defense Department to work out how they will handle Circle mages in their ranks. It hasn't been easy, they are very insistent on knowing who every mage in uniform is, and that enlistment papers and service oaths take priority over Circle loyalty. On the other hand, the brass have been very willing to allow our military members to remain in their current posts, and to understand the non-use rules all Circle-trained officers work under. The good news is, I think we'll end up with policies about where we projected them to be, back in April. We'll have to tell them who our people are, but our people won't be segregated or forced to choose between their uniforms and their families.

"The bad news is, that decision may be taken away by legislative fiat. David knows more than I do, but suffice to say a bill is being presented in the Senate to require anyone capable of using magic to register with the government."

"Senator Thomas should have heard already," Heller began, "but good old Senator Kennedy has introduced a bill to create a national registry of all mages, and to require that all mages resident in or traveling through the United States and associated territories submit their name, skill level, and associated identifying information, to said registry, which would be 'made available to all applicable government agencies'. Officially, he claims it's because magic is more dangerous than any firearm, but magic can't be licensed like a firearm."

"I've heard of it," Thomas admitted, "that bill's going to die in committee, to two words – Jim Crow."

"It's not Ted's bill that worries us," Heller said, "so much as the underlying shift it represents. The gun-control analogy Kennedy is pushing is unfortunately a good one, especially with the damn Revenants tearing up the landscape. The explosion in Atlanta was unfortunately well-publicized, especially since the Sims girl showed up afterward. Senator Kennedy's bill is an over-reaction to that, but it's the tip of the iceberg."

"You don't think he's just scoring points with the voters?"

"No, Adept Marterosian, he's not," Thomas told him, "at least not entirely. Heller is right that Kennedy is just the start. I've heard some comments from other Senators, a few Congressmen, along the lines of 'doing something' about magic. Our old allies are playing ball, counseling caution to all and sundry, but I'm not sure how long they can hold back the tide. Over in Europe, in Asia, things are better, politically. We've had our connections in place for far too long for this to break their strength. But we never expected any sort of public revelation, and too many of our contacts are unwilling to speak in our support, without knowing public opinion on the matter. Public opinion has been mostly disbelief, but with the escalating violence from the Revenants, it's turning against us. If we aren't careful, if we delay too long, we could wind up with something not as bad as Kennedy's bill, but bad enough."

"What's the worst we can expect," Hughes asked? "Heller?"

"Some kind of registration law," was the immediate reply. "Kennedy's bill is closer to feasible than many of us would like to believe. It would be challenged in court, of course, and probably be struck down, but the damage would be done by then."

"The best we can hope for?"

Heller laughed cynically, "status quo, a bunch of reporters gingerly investigating suspected mages, and the occasional witch-hunt when someone thinks magic is a reasonable explanation for whatever is annoying them at the moment. Most likely, we'll get something in between, some sort of voluntary 'licensing act', and harsh penalties if you break the law with magic while not licensed."

"Thomas?"

"While I will have to publicly deny agreeing with a lobbyist," Thomas said in an amused tone, "he's right. A bill that created some sort of federal license would be the best compromise we can expect, again similarly to federal and state weapon licenses. Those of us who wish to remain anonymous may do so, while those who do not can do so relatively safely. The licenses will also help cut down on the frauds that have begun to pop up."

Previously silent, Gerard DeSang asked, "Have we considered how the Native Americans would react to such a law? Those who still practice their traditions would be covered by any federal laws."

"Their agents haven't said a thing, not a peep. Except..." Heller paused, then continued in a curious tone, "A couple months ago the Navajo had someone out here. He was real cagey, didn't actually talk to anyone in Congress, but did talk to a few experts and advisors, like myself. Even talked to one of my journeymen. He didn't actually _say _anything, you understand, but... he made it abundantly clear that the Navajo would accept no outside interference with their mages. No threats or accusations or anything, he just... made it clear."

"Did you ID him?"

"His granddaughter is one of Yagami's students, from last year. Whatever their concerns about us, they patently don't have any about her."

"Unless they're doing with her what Jessica thinks we're doing with my girls," Marterosian said darkly.

Hughes slumped in his seat at that, resting his face in his hand for a moment as the conference fell silent. It was Thomas who found his voice first, "What was that?"

"Tell me something, Marterosian," Hughes asked, "Do you have any concept of what 'need to know' means?"

"I thought everyone here..."

"You and I were the only ones cleared for that, Marterosian," Hughes reminded him.

Thomas interrupted, "Well are you going to explain it now?"

"No," Hughes answered, "because none of you are cleared for it. Suffice to say, the Marterosian family is paying dearly for the information we need about one of our most dangerous enemies. This conference is not about that, it is about how to respond to political developments here in the US. Now, my staff here has come up with several courses of action we can take. I'll run down them, I want opinions on pros and cons, and how to carry through to achieve the general objectives.

"The first course is purely political. We use those connections we have built up over our thousands of years of history to push for laws favorable to us. At best, we would like to maintain our current anonymity and freedom of action. The worst we can afford is something like the licensing idea Heller mentioned, but I'd like specifics. Political action is non-negotiable, at this point, it's just a question of strategies to pursue.

"The second course is private diplomacy. We expand what contacts we have with other magical traditions, such as the Native Americans, and see if we can establish common ground or common purposes. Our relations with such groups have been rocky in the past, at best, but given our current situation and the aliens now aware of our world, we need to establish some sort of peaceful contact, to generate a united front. Also, that should help with our political situation, if we can establish common goals there.

"The third point is the most controversial, and it concerns publicity. Do we want to try and remain a completely covert organization, and if so, how? If not, how do we want to go public? I've had suggestions for everything from severing all contact with the outside world, to a Free Mason style exclusive club, to a public corporation. What I need from all of you are reasons for and against any of those, and any ideas you might have. Thomas, get us rolling."

The meeting continued for hours, but Hughes was quietly content with that. While the debate was spirited and wide-ranging, it was also polite and on-topic. He had selected the men and women on this call when he first formed the Moderns as his command staff. They had been chosen for their skills, for their varied view-points, and for their willingness to express those views. As much as possible, he had chosen people who would represent the factions he knew existed in the Circles, and they proved that wide variance here.

They did not come up with answers to the questions he had raised, but five hours and several notebooks later, Hughes finally called it a day. He had enough of a feel for his people to start some work, and they had enough to think on to come up with more plans and information for him, which was all he had expected from the call. He dismissed the others, hung up the line, then immediately dialed a new number.

It picked up almost instantly, "I'm sorry, Grand Master, it just slipped out."

"You have to be more careful, Shiraz," Hughes said. "No one but you and I knew where your girls were, and now half the Circles will know by Monday. The rest will know by Tuesday. So long as no one knew, you and they were safe. Now, we're going to have to convince everyone that Jessica's right, that you're using your daughters to gather intelligence on Hayate."

"That's what you were doing anyway," Shiraz accused.

Hughes pinched his nose, silently praying for patience. "Marterosian, do you have any idea how complicated our current situation is? Hayate, her Bureau friends, the Revenants, there are some forty factions in the Circles, plus the national politics. I've got people in half the countries in the world, the more populous half, looking to me for anything and everything. Hayate is the focus of it, the origin of the change, and the because of that, she's the focus of everyone with a gripe right now. If we don't go after her, half the Moderns will go over the Revenants. If we do, she'll destroy us all.

"Your girls are supposed to give us the inside information to convince our people we can leave her alone. They're supposed to provide the inside perspective we didn't have before Nimrod. They can't do that if everyone and their brother thinks they're spies. Hayate's already suspicious of me, justifiably. Do you really want her to be suspicious of your girls, as well? If she expels them, that's it. We won't get an inside agent again, which will cut our options in half. Your little slip of the tongue may very well have just done that."

"I'm sorry," Marterosian repeated somewhat defensively, "but I'm already worried about them! Justifiably! They're my little girls, Hughes, and wherever they go, they're in danger, just because of who their parents are. I sent them to Japan to keep them safe from the Revenants and to get them training since Jessica and I can't do it ourselves. But even there, who knows if some lunatic in the Revenants might find some way to attack the school? What if you decide you can't delay any longer, and attack the school to keep the barbarians in line? What if they come home and they really are what Jessica fears? Dammit, man, these are _my little girls_!"

"I'm well aware of that, Marterosian," Hughes sighed, "but do remember that I'm not Li. Also remember, I'm not the one who just trebled the risks they face with a slip of the tongue. If you had kept silent, we could have brought them back in May, found out what they'd learned, and used that information to build a solid case for sitting back and watching, a little longer or forever, any delay would be good. Now, we're going to have to convince everyone your little girls are willing spies, and there's every chance Hayate will evict them once she has proof of her suspicions. Look, here's how this plays out. Anyone, and I mean _anyone_, asks you about where your girls are, you tell them they're not cleared. No one is cleared for this operation, no one. They suggest things, you just look stubborn and repeat that they're not cleared. Anyone asks me, I'll tell them the same thing. They'll assume the worst, that we're using your girls as spies, which we are, so it won't even be lying. But for God's sake, don't ever slip like that again."

"I'll do my best," Marterosian agreed.

The handset was barely back in the cradle when a voice behind him said, "You know, if that man ever figures out what your puppies are really training for, he'll kill you."

Hughes felt his heart freeze in his chest for a second, but managed not to flinch. Turning, he glared at the black-clad figure behind him. "Dammit man, use the door!"

"But you keep warding it against me," Takashi countered, walking around the desk to settle in a chair, "I'm beginning to think you want out of our bargain."

"I do want out of our bargain," Hughes told him, "but I'm not willing to write off my friends and comrades."

"So you encourage some to think you'll unleash them on my musume when 'the time is right', while stringing others along on the hope of peace?" Takashi began clapping sarcastically, "Bravo, maestro, bravo."

Hughes ground his teeth for a moment, before closing his eyes and progressing through a calming mental exercise. He was not sure what it was, but something about Takashi just got to him. Takashi's puppet Akira was aggravating and loathsome, but lacked Takashi's innate ability to get under Hughes' skin and set him off. He would have suspected some sort of deliberate targeted psychological ploy, except everyone Hughes discussed it with reported the same reaction. Finally, without opening his eyes, he demanded, "What do you want this time, Takashi?"

"Your puppies. Tell me about them, and about their plan for Shanghai. My musume will be risking one of her knights, possibly one of her children, and I wish to be sure they will not be unduly endangered. It would upset her if anything happened to them. Which would upset _me_."

00000

While he normally preferred to eat at home, Chrono had more and more found himself having to stay late at his office, trying to keep a handle on running his sector. Part of it was simply dealing with the usual endless paperwork, but a large chunk of his work recently had been dedicated to the various problems on Earth. Hayate's problems with the Circles, containing the Egypt null and monitoring the Circle clean-up crew, and trying to track down Kriegsen, were all proving major headaches, even if they were not all, strictly speaking, the Bureau's concern or his.

So he once again found himself in one of the innumerable cafeterias scattered throughout the titanic bulk of Bureau HQ, looking for a table where he could spend some 'quiet' time away from his work. Naturally, that hope was dashed.

"Oi, Chrono! Pull up a chair."

Chrono almost decided to pretend he had not heard, but Samuel was a friend, if a distant one, and a fellow Admiral, if only recently. So he sighed mentally, and made his way to the table occupied by Samuel and two men he did not recognize. Introductions were passed around, and Chrono was once again confronted with his famous name, though it was at least for a different reason, this time.

"Oh, so you're the reason my office has been swamped under negligence complaints from the member worlds this last year," Gerasimov laughed.

Chrono started at the accusation, then glared, "Excuse me?"

"Ah, sorry, sorry," Gerasimov said, holding up his hands in mock surrender, "that sounded funnier in my head. No offense meant."

Chrono shook his head, "Apology accepted, but what's this about complaints? I haven't heard anything!"

"No reason you should," Erahn, Samuel's other guest, told him. "It's a Diplomatic Corp issue, not Operations."

Chrono transferred the glare, "It's complaints about me and my officers. I should have been informed immediately!"

"No, no," Gerasimov said, "not really. It's... business as usual. You've had issues on Earth, issues that had to be dealt with, and you've done an exemplary job. But it's all been a little public – has to be, since Earth isn't a signatory world – and that's making various member worlds jealous, so they complain that they're being neglected. The same thing happens everywhere, whenever there's a crisis. Once it's over, whoever wasn't involved starts complaining. It's not so much about them actually being neglected, as making sure they aren't. Like I said, business as usual. I am sorry, Chrono-san, I was just trying to make a little joke. It backfired."

"You should have heard the screaming after Ti'arol," Erahn commented, shaking his head, "as if the Bureau's taking down the most wanted fugitive at the time wasn't bad enough, we had to go and do it outside Bureau space!"

"The Star Serpent Case," Chrono said slowly, "that was my ship, back when I was still commanding it."

Erahn nodded, "and I'm right glad of it. But it's politics and diplomacy. The member worlds don't really care what happens to each other, so long as nothing happens to them, but leave them feeling a little exposed or unappreciated, and they'll lodge protests and 'demand action'. It's all routine, though, no one really means it."

Chrono grimaced in distaste. "Routine nothing? Idiocy. I still don't see why I wasn't informed about member worlds complaining about my people."

"Yup, pretty idiotic," Samuel agreed, "but we're here to protect them, so we're sort of obliged to listen if they think they have a problem."

"It's not really serious unless someone comes in person to deliver the protests," Gerasimov told him, "though there are all sorts of ways to give warning before reaching that point. We didn't bother passing any of it on to you, because it's not at that stage yet. Believe me, if any of these were remotely serious, it would have been passed on to you, and you'd've had a say in the response. As it is, we have standard replies to these complaints, tailored for the world in question and the situation they're complaining about."

Chrono nodded, and allowed Samuel to change the topic of conversation, but he filed the information away for later investigation. Routine or not, he did not like having anyone suggest that he or his people were not fulfilling their duties, and he especially did not like not having been informed of those questions.

00000

"So you still can't find out what Yosho's hiding, Eri?"

"I'm sorry, Master Adept," Eri said, bowing his head, "The Lord Protector's people are very loyal."

"Hmmm, yes, admirable, generally speaking, but not particularly convenient at the moment," Szash mused. "You've had no luck with the monitoring crews?"

"Beyond identifying Journeyman Turo as the one to discover whatever it is that has Master Adept Yosho concerned, no." Anticipating the next question, Eri continued, "And Gali and I have had no luck in convincing Journeyman Turo to share his discovery."

"As well you shouldn't," Szash countered, then chuckled. "Again, admirable loyalty and commendable adherence to protocols, but personally vexing at the moment. Make note of Mister Turo, that sort of integrity should be rewarded. Maybe we can convince him to join us in the Guard. I can always use reliable people."

Kneeling next to Eri, Gali offered, "I have encountered some less admirable people over in the Communications area. The Lord Protector exercised some uncommon rights a few days ago, rights he should not have any reason to exercise."

Szash perked up at that, leaning forward in her chair, "Oh? What rights were those?"

"He sent an activation signal recovered from the Masters, a signal to the Seed of Leviathan. A general activation signal."

Szash actually flinched at that, reversing her posture. "Seed? You're certain?"

"Yes, Master Adept."

Giving his partner a quizzical look, Eri asked, "Why would he send that signal? There's nothing out there to respond to it."

"I don't know, Eri," Gali shook her head, "but he accessed the transmission codes from the monitoring hall, and had Journeyman Turo send the signal."

"Why doesn't really matter," Szash muttered distractedly, thinking through the implications and very much liking what she suspected Yosho was hiding. "What matters is, the Conclave is going to want to know why."

"He was within his rights as Lord Protector," Gali commented.

"Of course he was," Szash murmured, smiling openly now at the pleasure of putting one over on Yosho, "but the Conclave won't care. As Lord Protector, if he is aware of a danger worthy of the Seed, he should have informed us so that we might decide how to respond to it."

"Seeking to question him before a panel in the Conclave will be difficult, ma'am," Eri warned. "They are well aware of your rivalry, and will not appreciate being used."

"Oh, but you two will make sure that rumors of all sorts are flying about what Yosho is hiding, and by the time I ask my questions, someone else will have called him before a panel. Yes, all sorts of rumors, including the most delicious one of them all..."

00000

Kell Shock: You're probably right on the first correction, but I don't think so on the first... Hughes is a name, but the 's or ' rule I learned is based on preceding letter, not type of noun – since his name ends w/ an s, it just gets the lone ' to denote possessive or plural. I could be wrong, though. I'm afraid Tai-yu won't be getting a device, mostly because I can't see it in her personality (wouldn't be consistent w/ her 'convict' status, either). I like your theories on the specifics of the Al Hazred/Atlantis connections, but won't confirm or deny... Atlantis' history will unfold as part of the background for the plot. The Cloak of Shades will make Laura more dangerous, but Mercedes has a few tricks up her sleeve (and more experienced backup in Yussef). As for Signum's comment, that was supposed to come across as sarcastic, but more on that next chapter:). I'm thinking I may do a Side Story regarding the Noodle Incident, just to get the Side Stories moving again. Thanks for the review!

TheWhiteMonk: I might do a Side Story on Didier, but I've got nothing planned at the moment. In all honesty, I've been stuck on two Side Stories on Juliet and Luke that I can't get to come out right. As for how to pronounce his names, it's French, and I believe it's supposed to be along the lines of Dee-Dee-ay, Dee-Dyay or Dee-Deyeh. Laura's learning, naturally, but so is everyone else. The kids are the focus, but the plot must progress, I'm afraid, and there are some questions that I'm trying to answer/clarify in-story. Thank you for reading!

Eternal-Longing: Tai-yu's speech was the part of last chapter I'm not entirely happy with. You're right to some extent, that if she was a 'loyal' Circle mage, she wouldn't be trying to further their explanation. But there are several overriding reasons for her to cooperate – most glaringly, the one she stated: the Circles will kill her if they ever get hold of her, and her best defense is to make Hayate's school as tough a nut as possible. The other reason has to do with what she showed them – the Circles' way, the Circles' methods, the first levels of why the Circles hold artificial enhancements in such abhorrence. Plus there's the fact that Hayate and her kids are just that likable:). I'm afraid Kaemon's surprise over Laura will have to remain a mystery, as I haven't really thought out such a scene, I just thought it was a fun way to end the scene. Sorry, but thank you for the review anyhow!

notcroaker: I disagree with your interpretation of Tai-yu's opinion of the US military, too:) I was originally going to say something about the Catch-22 Hughes is stuck in here, but thought up the above scene to hopefully clarify it. Hughes _is_ 'The Enemy', and is very much aware of it. He's also very much aware that he can't win that war, but that he can't hold the Moderns together if he gives the war up, either. Sorry it seems like harping, but in a way, he is in a worse position than Tai-yu – she can at least let someone else worry about immediate attacks. Also, because of his position in both the world and the plot, he's really only showing up when either talking to Hayate, or planning how to get around her. Apologies, I'll try not to be so blatant in the future.

Advent000: Hughes is a dangerous opponent, but Hayate is prepared, much more so than last year. As for the American/British debate, everyone knows the British are just clean-up crew, right?:P In all seriousness, the only practical differences between the British military and American are scale and specific gear. In terms of level of training and discipline, the two nations are essentially even, though the US has a better edge in morale at present (despite popular media's desperate attempts to argue otherwise). Thanks for the review!

DKnight54: In all honesty, the wolfpack approach would not add much to a device-wielder's power, because the device already does most of what a wolfpack does. Both provide control and balance on drawing extra power out of the mage's linker core. A wolfpack does provide a little extra power that is not the focus-mage's, but not much. Mostly, it provides the support and redundant control necessary to use the focus-mage's linker core at maximum strength without burning out the focus-mage. Doing that requires a great deal of power from the support-mages, which is why wolfpacks are run with full circles, and why the focus-mage is always very careful of how many supporters he has left. Device-wielders using it would be essentially redundant. On the flip side, the skills and philosophy of the wolfpack would be extremely useful in other ways to device wielders, as it is, in essence, the method the Bureau uses to create their battle-containment fields. As for teaching the kids, it's mostly a 'this is another way to look at it' exercise, showing them a different take on how much difference the support a device or wolfpack provides can make.


	9. 08 Before the Storm

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-08 – Before the Storm-

"This is a bad idea, sister," Rhys muttered in Latin. She would not admit it, certainly not to Aria-sensei, but it was clearer Latin than they had managed just a few weeks ago.

"Yes, it is," Saeryn agreed, managing to be just a little short, despite being very tired of this conversation, "but the other options are worse."

"We could be patient. Yagami-sensei has yet to make a decision."

"She will not, one way or the other, until we prove our determination." Saeryn paused in her work to give her sister a questioning look. "Was this not your idea in the first place, sister?"

Rhys grumbled wordlessly, and slumped into her chair. "I just do not like pushing like this. It is dangerous, sister."'

Saeryn turned back to her PDA, "Everything here is dangerous, you know that. You heard Journeywoman Sandoval, what Mother said, Father's warnings, just as I did. If we are in danger anyway, we may as well use that to our advantage. Mother will understand the risks we take, see the proof of Father's choice. What is a little danger compared to that?"

Rhys grimaced, but held her peace, allowing Saeryn to return to wending her way through the school's network. She had only the vaguest ideas as to what she was doing, or what she was looking for, but she thought she had enough. Several nights of research on various data-retrieval and search methods had given the two of them several methodologies, and she could practically feel the rightness of it now.

Her concentration was broken again when Rhys asked, "What about Laura? Do you think..."

Saeryn tried to keep working, but figuring out her sister's trailed-off question was diverting. "I think she is being honest with us," she answered after a second. "She will help, if we receive permission. She will also turn us in if she catches us."

"I meant..."

"I know," Saeryn interrupted, "but I do not know how I feel about her intrusions. Given that, how can I tell you how you feel about them? She is annoying, pushy, overly certain, and impolite. Yet she is also right, and we could learn a great deal from her."

"She's so loud, and violent," Rhys complained.

That made Saeryn smile slightly, "I am the one who should be complaining of that, sister."

"I have never hit anyone," Rhys replied primly, "I am not violent."

"But you are more so than I," Saeryn countered, drawing another mumbled grumble from Rhys. "You are right, though, she is loud and violent – uncouth, as mother would say. Typically American. Yet look at what she can do, Rhys."

"Hime-sama would be better to apprentice with," Rhys argued.

"True again, but you remember her response, yes?"

They had initially tried to enlist Noriko's aid in escaping Laura's clutches, or at least to see if she would be an additional 'mentor', only for her to amusedly decline to do either. "Laura's the best of us for the two of you," the princess had told them with a smile, "she'll set you right. Eventually."

Needless to say, they had not been pleased by that response, not least because, at the time, Laura had still been pushing them to help her with her first prank on Mercedes. Rhys had suggested asking Laura about her device in exchange for their help, and that had proven disastrous, though Saeryn was willing to admit, just between the two of them, that their approach to the offer might have been the problem, rather than the request itself.

Rhys grimaced at the shared memory of Noriko's 'reassurance', "Must she keep using us for her pranks, though?"

Saeryn shrugged fatalistically, "It is either help her or become her target. Better to avoid her wrath and learn what we can from her. I wonder, though, if perhaps we should not approach Signum-sensei for martial arts lessons. Perhaps with her teaching us, we can avoid the Al Khan boy's games."

"Yussef is not that bad."

"Yussef thinks too much of himself," Saeryn replied tartly. "He thinks only of battle and weapons, of turning us into more blind soldiers to follow his will."

"He's trying to teach us how to protect ourselves, sister," Rhys countered, "of course that focuses on battle and coordination. Look at how well we did that first day."

"You mean how well he let us do," Saeryn countered. "You know he had almost all the second-years in that maze. They had more than enough capacity to eliminate us as soon as they found us, yet they toyed with us for several minutes. Because he decided to make a point." She practically spat the last sentence, feeling the same insulted anger she had felt when she realized what Yussef had done. Saeryn refused to be used, hated to be toyed with, and had made that abundantly clear to any number of tutors over the years. The fact that Yussef had utterly ignored her efforts to make that clear to him only made her dislike him more.

"Still better than Laura," Rhys muttered. "At least he isn't going to get us grounded again."

"But Laura can be manipulated," Saeryn said, then sighed and gave up on tracking down the much-referenced 'device design manual' she had been looking for. She turned her chair to face Rhys sitting in front of her own desk. "We have been over this, sister. Laura is loud and violent, obnoxious and arrogant, but she is our best route for accomplishing our goal. The teachers will hold us back, the other students will watch us too closely, be too wary of us. Why are you still upset about this? I thought you agreed with me."

"I do," Rhys grimaced, shoving out of her chair to stalk over to the bunk-bed Hayate had installed specifically for them, "It's just, she makes me nervous. I keep getting this feeling whenever she's around, like the world's about to fall on us, and it's her fault. Nothing is ever on balance when she is around. She makes me nervous."

Saeryn understood that sentiment perfectly well, since Laura made her nervous as well. "She makes everyone nervous," she said after a moment, "all of us are uncomfortable around her."

"Have you ever felt that way about me?"

For a second, Saeryn could only stare at her sister in shock, never having expected such a question. "W... what?"

Rhys spun about suddenly, almost glaring at her sister, "Do I ever make you nervous like that? You always say I take too many risks, that I'm too energetic and hyper, like we were just saying about Laura. Do I make you that nervous? Afraid?"

Saeryn had to struggle to find something to say, then rose slowly to her feet and matched Rhys's glare with one of her own. "You are _nothing _like Laura," she stated, jabbing a finger in Rhys' chest, "nothing at all. Have you made me nervous? Yes! Do you have any idea how easy it is to get injured playing baseball? Playing any sport? Yet you always go flitting about the field like it's a picnic, careening off everyone and everything in sight! But not like Laura. You're my twin, Rhys. I'm not afraid of you, just afraid for you. Who else am I going to talk to if something happens to you? No one here knows enough about anything worthwhile." Rhys looked surprised through most of the lecture, but when Saeryn wound down, pulled her into a hug. Saeryn returned the gesture a little uncomfortably, before asking, "again, though, what brought this on?"

Rhys shook her head, replying with a muffled, "nothing."

"Something," Saeryn countered. "You've never thought I was afraid of you before. How _could _you think that? You're my twin! It's insulting."

"I'm sorry," Rhys muttered, "it just... occurred to me. You're always complaining about how physical I am, just like we were complaining about Laura, and I know you don't like it here any more than I do."

Saeryn would have replied, but a faint tingle of familiar magic on her nerves distracted her. "Father is calling," she said, just as the phone rang.

Rhys practically threw her aside, lunging for the phone, switching without a thought to English as she shouted, "I've got it!"

Saeryn stumbled before catching herself, smiling a little at her sister's antics. While competing with anyone else was a waste of time, Rhys was competitive enough to turn anything into a race with her sister, even something as simple as answering the phone, especially when it was their father calling. Letting Rhys have her victory, Saeryn settled for being the first to think of the 'speaker' button, just after Rhys' excited greeting.

Their father replied with a chuckle, "Hello to you, too, Rhys, and to you Saeryn."

"Hello, father," Saeryn greeted him, trying to let him hear how happy she was just to hear from him again.

Rhys pouted, "You're guessing."

"No I'm not," he countered, "you always answer the phone first, Rhys. How are my little holy terrors?"

"Dad!"

"We're fine, father," Saeryn told him, "though we do wish we could go home." She knew his answer before he replied, just like he knew they would ask.

"Not until the situation with your mother has been resolved," he reminded them, "not until it's safer here than there. But I didn't call to go over old ground. What have you two been getting up to?"

Rhys took off in a more exuberant version of her earlier complaints about Laura, and Saeryn let her go, turning part of her attention back to her work. _Father will keep her busy for half an hour,_ she thought. _Let's see how far we can get before it's my turn._ They had agreed not to tell their father anything about their plans for devices, almost immediately after deciding to make the attempt in the first place. Which still left plenty of things to talk about. Rhys was insistent that enough 'subtle' comments on how rude and crazy everyone was would convince him to bring them home. Saeryn doubted that, but did enjoy hearing his opinions on things that troubled her. It was almost as good as actually being home to ask him.

00000

Laura trotted out of the dorm after her shower, reveling in the slightly rubbery feeling of her knees and elbows. Signum had left off monitoring her for a day and actually sparred with her again, so she had been on cloud nine for a while. Now she was on her way to get some homework done, and hopefully pester Noriko again about transitioning Paradox to use Velka runes.

She hit the Library doors, and was at the foot of the stairs when she realized everyone was trying not to be obvious as they stared at her and giggled. Movement drew her attention to Marcel, who was walking towards her from where he had been standing by Yussef, a smile on his face and a paper in his hands. She frowned at him, and demanded, "What's going on?"

He hesitated a moment, then put on a falsely-sympathetic face, "I'm sorry, Laura. I understand how you feel, but... it would never work between us. You're just not my type."

That confused the heck out of her, even as she snatched the paper he was holding out. Flipping it over, she found an obviously-doctored picture. It showed her own distinctively decorated PDA, but the image on the PDA's screen was one she had never seen before. A picture of Marcel, looking a little surprised as if he was not expecting the camera, was centered under a huge pink heart, surrounded by more pink hearts and a cloud of 'X's and 'O's. Superimposed over the image was a shot quote: 'Dear Diary, how can I get that uber-hottie Marcel-chan to return these feelings of mine that make me feel all warm and fuzzy? Laura.'

It was blindingly obvious where it came from, of course, and she could tell the rumors were going to be just as annoying as those from the last year about her and Yussef. Still, she was both happy and disappointed. Happy because, given the school's small and close student body, the prank was very well crafted and, against anyone else, would have been horribly effective. Disappointed, because it was too soon after Mercedes' first prank, and because it reflected a misunderstanding of the target. There was a world of difference, after all, between Yussef, and Yussef's flunky. So Laura put on her most pitiful pout, making her eyes wide and teary, clutched her hands together, and begged loud enough for the audience to hear, "but Marcel-chan, how can you say that if we don't even give our love a chance?"

He looked utterly horrified for a second, then huffed and chuckled, "Please don't shoot the messenger, Laura."

"You started it," she laughed back, "if you didn't want to play, you shouldn't have jumped in the game. I'm insulted, though, this is pure outright slander! I've never kept a diary!" Marcel just grinned a little and shook his head, not the laugh she was looking for, so she gave up getting him to play, and asked, "Did the Rich Witch do this, or is she outsourcing?"

"She took the picture of me," he said, "but I don't know if she did the manipulations herself or not. You know you're falling behind. She's two pranks up on you now."

"It's cool," Laura replied, folding the picture carefully to put it away, "she hit too quick, didn't take enough time to figure me out. I've got her pegged, though, and when I'm ready, this'll all be a couple of weak chuckles. Thanks for the picture!"

She made it to the top of the stairs before the urge for one last joke overcame her. She resumed her teary-eyed expression, leaned over the rail, and half-shouted, half-sobbed, "Marcel-chan! I won't give up until you admit you return my feelings!" Then she bolted for the back, smothering her laughter in her hands, ignoring Natalia's shouted order to 'be quiet'.

Once ensconced at her table, however, she contemplated the picture again. Despite what she told Marcel, it was rather vexing that Mercedes had scored again so quickly, especially since Laura's plans were only a day or so from execution. _I could go tonight,_ she thought, contemplating that, but it felt wrong, rushed. _No, too much chance the disassembler will destroy too much. It's gotta be precise, or it'll go too far, and I need another day to get it fine-tuned. No, go as planned,_ she finally decided, smirking at the thought of Mercedes' reaction. _Let her have her moment in the sun, she'll be mortified once I'm done with her._

00000

"Thank you for this, Vita-sensei," Juliet said as she closed up the book she and her teacher had been referencing.

Vita shrugged, "Eh, it's nothing. Not like you're getting ambitious with your design. Like the name though... Glaive. Nice and intimidating."

Juliet smiled a little, nodding, "Yeah, well, I'm not as full of myself as the Trio."

Vita snorted, "_No _one's that full of themselves, not even those three. You good for now? I need to head up to the house to take the watch."

"Actually..." Juliet said, trailing off for a second, before asking, "could you train me? Like Signum-sensei does with Laura?" Vita stared at her for a second, visibly non-plussed, so she added, "I'm sorry to be so forward, I know it would be a huge favor, but... could you?"

Vita coughed a couple times, shaking her head, "Woo, _that _was a surprise. Why aren't you asking Signum? She's bigger on that sort of thing than I am."

Juliet shook her head, "Signum-sensei gave me some training last year, after Yussef's class started up, but it's not my style. It's too... over-controlled."

"Tche, that's Laura you're talking about."

Juliet chuckled, "Which confuses all of us no end, sensei. I can't figure out how she stands it."

"That makes two of us. But Signum's good. Look how well she's done with Laura."

Juliet shook her head again, "But what she's teaching Laura isn't my style. I've seen some of your fights, video footage and the like, and you fight like I do. Signum-sensei's all about the fancy maneuvers and showy techniques. You're brutal, direct, and practical, just like me. I need to be better at it, stronger."

"I think I should be taking that personally," Vita muttered, "but what's gotten you interested in this all of a sudden?"

Juliet grimaced, "I just don't like the idea of going in half-as... half-trained like I did last year. Yeah, I did fine, but that was with Yussef's boys watching my back, and they won't always be around, like this summer."

Vita matched her expression, "Yeah, I don't trust that bastard, either. Didn't when Hayate-sama first met him, like him even less these days. Manipulative punk. I thought you were getting over those nightmares, though? Shamal-baa-san said you're doing much better." Juliet coughed in surprise, almost doubling over as she gave her teacher an incredulous stare. Vita grinned and chuckled, "What? You thought we hadn't heard about what you kids call her? Please, we knew even before Cid-chan confessed. You should have seen the look on Shamal's face when Aria told us she'd overheard Noriko using it."

"We don't mean anything disrespectful by it! We aren't being mean, I swear!"

Vita chuckled again, waving her protestations aside, "Yeah, yeah, we know that. I'm tempted to dare Laura to say it to her face, though, 'cept Hayate-sama would yell at me for getting a student in trouble. But like she said, I thought you were over those nightmares."

Juliet would have preferred not to talk about that again, Shamal was pushy enough. But if Vita was not going to be distracted, there was no getting around it. "Yeah, I am mostly over them, but that's not the point. I need to learn how to fight without being pissed at the same time."

"Signum could teach you to control your temper better than I can," Vita commented. "You may not have noticed, but I'm not the calmest of people."

Juliet laughed at that, "Yeah, sensei, we've all noticed. But I don't need to control my temper. I need to learn how to use it, without getting used by it. Everything I saw in that damn dream was because I let my anger run wild, but I can't get rid of it. It's always there, so I'm going to have to put it to use. I figure, since you're already helping me with my device, you can help me with the rest of it, too."

Vita leaned back against the door, crossed her arms, and just stared at Juliet for a couple minutes. Juliet sat there and tried not to fidget, debating saying something more, but uncertain if that would help or hurt. Finally, Vita grumbled something under her breath before saying, "All right, I'll take you on. Could do with a challenge, anyhow. But I'm not Signum. I'm not going to teach you fancy moves and all. I'm going to show you how to fight and win, mostly by beating on you until you get the idea. Got me?"

"Understood, sensei," Juliet could not help smiling. Then something else occurred to her, "Do you think, maybe we could include Allison in those lessons? You're approach is more her style, as well."

"Oh, what, so now you're volunteering my time? Gee, thanks."

Juliet almost panicked at that, thinking she really had mad Vita mad. Only, there was a glint in the red-head's eye, so she relaxed a little, and shot back, "Well, I figured, since you've got all that time free, as your student, I should help you fill it, right?"

Vita smirked, "I've got all the 'help' I need in that area. I'll talk to Allison, see if she's interested. Anyone _else _you want to loan me out to?"

"No, sensei. Thank you for the help."

"Tche, don't thank me yet. You're not getting a thing until that device is done, and then you get to explain all the bruises to Shamal." Vita opened the door, "Tell Hayate in class tomorrow, I think you're ready to start building your device. She'll want to review the design, but you should be able to get started while she does that."

Juliet just nodded, and once the door was closed leaned back in her chair and scrubbed at her eyes. _Man, I was scared she'd say no, _she thought, relaxing a little. She had been afraid of saying something, anything, wrong to Vita, and having the volatile woman explode on her. Having things turn out so easily was a great relief, until something else occurred to her. Vita lived up in Hayate-sensei's house, and so did Shamal. Hayate and her Knights all ate together, and made no secret of the fact that they talked about their students pretty much continuously. "Great," Juliet muttered, "by sundown, Shamal-baa-san's going to be hearing how I'm not so over those nightmares. She'll be oh-so-sweetly asking for a moment of my time by breakfast, won't she?"

She could not be too mad about it, however. Despite the uncomfortable imposition, Shamal's counseling had helped her get over the remnants of Ndebele's little experiment. While nothing had ever approached the horror of his spell-induced vision, the resultant nightmares had been bad, and frequent, though they were far less intense and less frequent now. It was still embarrassing to talk about, though. "Maybe I can convince her I'm just taking precautions," Juliet pondered, packing her bag again, "downplay everything. It's not that bad, I just want to be sure, is all." Even to her, it sounded weak.

00000

"So you've settled in all right?"

Cidela smiled a little, relaxing back into the gentle pull of the brush through her hair, "Hai, okaa-san. The only problem has been convincing everyone that I'm fine."

Shamal chuckled a little at that, "Well, you can't blame them, musume. They're your friends, they are supposed to worry about you."

They were sitting in Cidela's dorm room early on a Saturday morning, Shamal slowly and carefully brushing out her hair. It had become something of a ritual over the summer as Cidela let hair grow, both of them gingerly feeling their way into a relationship neither had ever really experienced before. Cidela was uncertain why Shamal so enjoyed brushing out her hair, but for her part, the steady smooth pulling was soothing, a comforting bit of steady regularity which was especially welcome now. After a peaceful summer of nothing more intense than discussions of Circle politics, the return of her classmates and arrival of the new kids had increased the energy level and chaos quotient of the campus exponentially, and contrary to popular conception, said increases were not all Laura's fault. Mostly her fault, yes, but Cidela's classmates were all highly unique individuals, and becoming accustomed to them once again was proving tiring.

"I just wish they'd be a little more willing to believe me when I say I'm fine. Noriko is still trying to involve me in _everything_. I'd rather just sit back and watch."

"It helped you last year," Shamal reminded her. "You were such a scared little thing at first, but she got you to open up."

Cidela shrank a little, not liking being reminded of anything from _before_, "but I don't need it now. I'm comfortable enough with everyone, and talking to them all is distracting me from my reading."

"You're okay with the new students, as well?"

That made Cidela frown, and she could not help a little head shake. "Not so much, no. Oh, there's nothing wrong, but... they all seem scared of me, for some reason."

_'I think they are scared of __me__,'_ Rafiq corrected, looking up from the book he was reading. He was curled around his stand, a pillar of wood with multiple dowels coming off it at angles, which Cidela and Zafira had built for him over the summer. It sat on her desk, giving him a place to lay when Cidela was studying, or when he had his own reading to pursue. He continued once he had their attention, _'The Spanish girl, in particular, seems uncomfortable with my presence. Her eyes are always on me when we are near, not on you, Mistress.'_

That hurt, the thought that anyone would be afraid of Rafiq. "That's ridiculous! You wouldn't hurt a fly! How can anyone be afraid of you?"

_'Because I exist in the form of a snake,'_ he answered, rotating his tail through a circle in his own equivalent of a shrug. _'Humans fear foreign things, and there are fewer things more foreign to the human form and eye than a serpent. They will learn, as your classmates have.'_

"He has a point," Shamal offered. "Rafiq is the most obviously strange person here, given his obvious sentience in a non-human form. Speaking of which, have you tried shifting to humanoid again?"

_'No,'_ the snake replied, _'nor will I, until Hypocrates is completed. It puts too much strain on Mistress.'_

"I can handle it," Cidela countered defensively, "it doesn't require that much more energy."

_'No.'_

"Better not to push him, musume," Shamal advised. "He is supposed to help you control your magic, and to protect you. Perhaps he senses something you do not? Also, it's never a good idea to make your familiar angry with you. You've started putting Hypocrates together, it will be finished in a month or so, that's not so long a wait."

"No, but... I'm getting tired of being coddled, okaa-san. I have control now, should I not be using it?"

"Yes, to some extent," Shamal answered. She traded the brush for a pair of ties, "I was thinking one braid, this time? Simple and straight, since last week's collection was so complicated?" Cidela nodded, and Shamal began separating the long black strands before continuing, "You do have control, and you should be testing the limits of it, but we have to be careful, Cid-chan. Your native strength is almost as great as Hayate-sama's was when we first came to her, but it is very wild. Healing gifts are rare enough, one as strong as yours is almost unheard of, and we do not want to risk you with unnecessary experiments. Also, providing Rafiq the energy to support a larger form would not test your control, only your strength and endurance, which you demonstrated quite well back in February."

"But it's not fair to him," Cidela objected, "he shouldn't be stuck in that form all the time, just because we're worried about me."

_'The familiar in question happens to be quite comfortable in this form,'_ Rafiq replied, _'though I am getting a bit big for you to be lugging around. I'm almost as long as you are tall, Mistress.'_

"I like carrying you," Cidela objected, frowning at him, "you aren't heavy, just long."

_'Thus the argument is settled,'_ Rafiq said. _'If you do not object to carrying me around, I see no reason to rush into being my own transport.'_

Cidela sighed, but let it go. She and Rafiq had gone through the same argument before, and after one unpleasant attempt in July, he had flatly refused to consider attempting to transform until after she had her device up and running. She had hoped Shamal would back her up, she really did think it was unfair to Rafiq to leave him so dependent on her to get around, but that was manifestly not happening. "All right, I can wait another month or so," she allowed, then leaned back into Shamal's braiding.

Shamal's next question surprised her, "I was wondering, what do you think of Didier? He's sat in on two sessions, now, and doesn't seem to have a problem with Rafiq."

Cidela had to think that over for a minutes. Didier had sat in on her tutoring sessions, and seemed quite comfortable there, in contrast to his usual shyness. He paid attention, was very polite, and his questions were usually good ones. But beyond that, she found she had no real sense of him. "I don't know," she finally admitted. "He's polite enough, but doesn't share much. A very quiet boy."

"Like someone else I could mention," Shamal said with a smile, "you're a very quiet _girl_."

"Yes, but I don't know why he is. He's polite enough, but until I actually get to know him, that's all I can say."

"Too bad, I was hoping you could draw him out of his shell."

"Have Noriko-chan talk to him," Cidela suggested. "She's very good at such things, and she enjoys doing it."

"I was hoping you would, though. You need more friends, Cid-chan."

Cidela shrugged, "I have enough friends. Noriko-chan, Laura-chan, Niranjana-chan..."

"Well, so long as you are comfortable," Shamal allowed doubtfully. Then she sighed slightly, "I'm glad you've let your hair grow out. Hayate always preferred short hair, as it is easier to maintain, but this is fun."

"It's relaxing," Cidela replied, "and I always liked long hair. Easier to keep it out of my eyes. Different from Egypt, nicer."

"There are other differences," Shamal said, an amused tone to her voice, "like having more friends. You really aren't getting any closer to the others? Yussef, or Noah, maybe?"

Cidela blushed when she realized what her mother was getting at. "Well... I... I'm not... interested in anyone, okaa-san." Running through Cidela's mind was, _Please don't let her ask any more, please don't let her ask anymore._

"Oh, that's unfortunate. Here I was hoping we could talk about your first high school crush."

Cidela could not tell if Shamal was joking or not, but sighed, "Not yet, okaa-san." Much as she liked her new mother, she was terribly uncomfortable with talking about any such thing. It just was not done. "Besides, you'll find someone for me when I'm old enough," Cidela added without thinking.

Then she felt Shamal freeze behind her, and turned around to find a look of utter horror on her mother's face. "I would never do that! Not to you, not to anyone!"  
"I... I know, okaa-san," Cidela said hesitantly, not sure if Shamal was angry or just hurt, "it just slipped out. It's what I expected all my life."

Shamal wrapped her up in a hug, "It won't happen here, though. You know I was just talking, right? I won't ever force you into anything."

"I know," Cidela replied, returning the hug, "but I can't help acting like how it was, sometimes, from habit." She grimaced a little, "though, I do wish you'd talk about something else. It's embarrassing!"

Shamal giggled into her hair, "But Cid-chan, you won't tell me who you're interested in, so I just have to keep guessing, and see who gets the biggest blush."

00000

Yussef watched the C-130 roll down the apron from the end of the runway, engines almost idling, then turned his attention once more to the surrounding area. All around him, and far off in the distance across the runways, Kansai International Airport was a bustling hive of activity. Trucks and airplanes, tractors and carts, people running about madly, buses hauling passengers, there was an endless whirl of motion that seemed utterly chaotic. Behind him was a rented hanger, inside that a chartered business jet, some ten or twelve people working on said plain and hangar, and two Circle mages. None of what he saw was in way calculated to make him calm.

Standing to his left and just a little ahead of him, Signum was a rock of stability, the only motion her long ponytail whipping in the wind. She was in her full armor, Levantine sheathed on her hip, standing with her hands clasped in the small of her back, a picture of stoic immobility. Imitating her appearance of calm was proving simple enough, in general, though he was uncertain how successful he was, even with Zulfiqar fixed to the back of his own armor. Actually matching her calm was an entirely different proposition.

When she first told him he would be accompanying her to Kansai, and then to Shanghai, his first thought had been to round up the guys and get them ready to go. But Shamal had informed him that he was going with her, and no one else. "This is just an observation mission, Yussef. We will not be involved in any combat, and your Myrmidons would just be standing around. You are going to see how operations such as this are actually executed, how troops handle in the field. You did well enough in February, but you need experience, which this will help provide. Leave your troops here."

Given how uncomfortable he still was with the idea of the Myrmidons, he was surprised at just how much more _un_comfortable he was without them. Despite his armor and Zulfiqar's weight, he felt naked and exposed, the skin between his shoulder-blades crawling, the urge to start wrapping himself and his teacher in shields strong enough to worry him.

_'Relax, Yussef,'_ Signum ordered. _'Nothing is going to happen here today. We won't even be flying over with them. This is just to introduce us to their team, so we'll know who to watch and they'll know who not to shoot. They will not attack us, not today.'_

"Still don't like being this exposed," he muttered back.

She turned towards him briefly, and he thought her mouth quirked just a little, but then she was back to staring impassively at the plane rolling to a stop. A tow engine hooked the forward gear and maneuvered the hulking cargo plane until it backed up to within a few meters of the hangar, the rear ramp lowering as it rolled. Signum remained standing in place, so Yussef remained at her shoulder, watching as ten men trooped off the plane, carrying field packs each, and a heavier cargo-case to every two men.

Watching them march down the ramp, the easy way they carried their burdens, the ready gazes scanning the area, and the fact that only one of them paid any obvious attention to his teacher, Yussef knew he was looking at Hughes' much-talked-about Black Dogs. Despite his distaste and distrust, Yussef was impressed. Just watching them unload, he felt the same sense of unified purpose he had always admired in his countries soldiers, the same sense he could sometimes see flashes of in his own Myrmidons, and part of him wanted very badly to ask how they did it, how they reached that level. At the same time, these were the enemy, however cozy things were with the Moderns at the moment, and the thought of Hughes having forces this good at his command was chilling.

One of the men, a short broad-shoulder brick of a westerner, passed off his end of a case to one of the ground crew, then broke off to walk towards them. He had been the only one watching them, and Yussef had to work not to focus on him as he closed. Yussef was here to watch Signum's back, which meant keeping an eye on everyone else, while she handled whoever decided to chat. From the way the others all stopped and settled in place just inside the hanger, he could tell they were wary. _They've got to be just as nervous as I am,_ he tried to comfort himself, _this close to a couple heretics and not allowed to do anything about it._

"Thorngrave," the closest said, and it took Yussef a moment to realize it was his name, "you two would be Signum and... Al Khan."

"Correct," Signum answered, "we will be observing your next operation, Mister Thorngrave. I thought it best if we introduced ourselves before simply showing up."

He nodded once, "Wise of you, though I have to question bringing a kid along, however enhanced."

"We prefer to judge someone based on their demonstrated ability, rather than mere age," Signum replied. "You might keep in mind, he planned and led our strike on New Delhi."

Thorngrave snorted derisively, "I might, if that had been anything more complicated than a glorified smash and grab. It doesn't take much skill to blow a hole and waltz through it."

That was annoying, but far less so than Laura's usual antics, so without looking away from the other soldiers, Yussef commented, "I noticed your bringing guns to a mage-battle. Are you really that worried about mundane guards, or are your own shields just as poor as those we ran into in New Delhi?" He could not help grinning ever so slightly as the 'not listening' soldiers stiffened en mass, and Thorngrave's head turned with turret-like slowness towards him. "As for my plan being simple... New Delhi hardly required any subtlety. Besides," he cocked a questioning eyebrow, "aren't you Americans the ones always harping on 'keep it simple, stupid'?"

Uriel glared at him for a moment, then smiled slowly. "Always good to know the opposition's worth the trouble," he commented. Then he turned and started into the hangar, "you brought the kid, you're responsible for him. We'll be here for another five hours, final prep, then the hop to Shanghai. Preliminary teams are already on-site, with Schuster, under cover of a business convention, they'll isolate the target once we arrive, then we'll take it down and secure it. Questions?"

"Only Yussef's," Signum replied. "What, precisely, are firearms going to accomplish against mages?"

Uriel gave her a flat look, then sighed and shrugged, walking over to one of the cases the Dogs had brought with them. He and the man who had been helping him carry it popped the latches, removing the lid to reveal a pair of assault rifles embedded in foam. Those were removed with the foam layer they were in, revealing ammo boxes beneath. Uriel pulled out one box, popped it open, and removed a pair of rounds, flipping one each to Signum and Yussef. "That's what makes them worthwhile against mages."

Yussef caught the bullet, almost bobbling it in surprise. Treating supposedly live ammunition so cavalierly was a little scary. But as soon as it was in his hand, he felt something, energy within the round. "Each bullet's enchanted?"

Uriel and the other man laughed, before the unknown responded, "Hell no, lad, that'd be a pain in the arse, magicking up every bullet."

"Our R&D types learned long ago that, if exposed under the proper conditions, certain metals and gases will retain magical properties, even through a forging or molding process," Uriel explained. "Not as refined as what you're thinking, but reactive. The bullets we use aren't plain lead and copper. They're an alloy, small amounts of those metals and gases. Exposing them to shields while the mix is still molten makes the resulting bullets react to shields. One of those bullets won't go through a standard shield, but the fifth or sixth will. Even against a wolfpack, a full clip will get a round or two through, which will ruin any mage's day."

"Theoretically," the other man added with a chuckle, "no one's ever done it in combat before. Should be nice to see if it'll live up to the boss's boasting."

"It'll work, Arlain," Uriel said, taking the two bullets back, "it'll work. New toys like this always work once. Question is, will it work a second time?"

Signum had a few more questions, mostly determining where she and Yussef would observe from. They eventually settled on overhead observation, teleporting in once the strike began to leave the Moderns the element of surprise. Uriel even admitted he was planning on their arrival being noticed, and causing confusion in the Revenants as to what was actually happening.

Throughout their discussions, Yussef kept back, watching the other troopers. For the most part, they were sitting on their crates or stretched out on the hanger floor, the largest of them actually apparently asleep. There was one oriental man who was quite obviously scared of the two device-wielders, standing as far away as he could without abandoning his fellows, fidgeting continuously as he stared at them. The rest were also watching, Yussef could tell, but being more subtle about it. None of them went to check their gear until Signum was satisfied with Uriel's answers, and the two of them were leaving.

As they walked out to a safe teleport distance, Signum asked, "So, any thoughts on them?"

"They're good," Yussef replied, then shrugged, "which you already knew and is obvious from Hughes' trust in them. If they're right about the Shanghai target, this should be a cakewalk, though they're still too dependent on large support forces."

"They have improved there since February," Signum countered, "improved rapidly, given that there are less than two hundred people involved in this operation. If they manage to keep that rate of improvement, they should be trained to field teams like Uriel's solo by next August. The Revenants are managing it, after all. Do you think you could take Uriel's team?"

"It would depend on circumstances," Yussef said slowly. "If they got the drop on me... big maybe. Zufliqar's automatics might suffice to get me enough time to engage, but might not. Especially not if those rounds of theirs are more effective at higher calibers. Given the type of unit, at least one of those guys has to be a sniper, and a heavy enough sniper round, or a tank round if they bring up armor, could blow right through my automatics."

"If those bullets of theirs work," Signum qualified.

"True. But that's if they got the drop on me. In a straight up fight," Yussef shook his head slowly, "there's no way in hell that team could take me down in a straight fight, Myrmidons or not. They have the firepower to maybe manage it, but they would still be relying on their own native strength for shields. Without the greater power and multi-tasking a device allows, they couldn't stand up to my counter-strikes."

"What if they each led a wolfpack?"

Yussef had to think that one over for a minute, and Signum's teleport was clearing before he put together his answer. "Wolfpacks would make them much more dangerous," he said slowly, "but still not to the level of a device mage. It wouldn't be fun, and that many of them at once would probably take me down. But I think I would have a chance, if only because they can't individually multi-task. I'd have to be in perfect form, mind you, but I'd have a chance. Rather try it with the boys, though, level the playing field. Me, Marcel and Luke... once their devices are up and running, the three of us could take Uriel's team, with their wolfpacks. I think."

Signum nodded slowly as he explained, "About what we reasoned. You, Laura, and Noriko could take Uriel's team easily, but probably not if they were heading wolfpacks. Vita and I could handle them quite roughly, wolfpack or not, but you three still lack experience. Just don't go trying to take them down tomorrow. We're going just to watch and make sure Hughes isn't pulling a fast one."

"Understood, sensei," Yussef replied, then grinned, "no worries, I'm not Laura, to go haring off after a 'fun fight'."

Signum quirked an eyebrow at him, "There's nothing wrong with enjoying battle. Now I believe you have some homework to finish, ne?"

00000

Author's Note: As usual, my apologies for the delay. Got assaulted by Muses this month, unfortunately all for _other _stories. The idea for Juliet's scene with Vita above was what finally shook loose her Side Story. Originally, her summer was going to be similar to Allison's, giving her a little resolution, but I'd already done that with Allison, and Juliet's summer provides much more plot-fodder. As for the other scenes, I'm finding I have difficulty with non-action scenes, especially low-conflict ones like Cidela's & Shamal's. Anyhoo...

00000

Eternal-Longing: Always glad to explain, though I prefer to do it 'in story'. In this case, though, I don't think that precise topic'll come up again for a while. Laura's attitude towards the twins is based on her experience and Noriko's, and the mistakes they made. She lacks Noriko's and Yussef's maturity, but she does care about her friends and minions. As for her speech, that was also based on her experience, specifically in February, so yeah, all sorts of learning there. As with Kaemon, I'm afraid I don't think I'll be writing a scene with Yussef working on devices with the remaining second-years, not soon at least. Maybe once they're in the process of building the devices. I'm not generally a 'conspiracy' fan either, but the reactions should be fun when it's all unveiled.

Kel Shock: It probably should have been 'omniscience', but Laura's just as likely to claim 'omnipotence', just for the drama value:). Wrack and Ruin are named for personal penchants – 'Wrack' because Saeryn is the more mental of the two and more likely to try a mind-screw, while Rhys is more likely to engage in physical violence, hence 'Ruin'. Hopefully their scene above will help, though it was just them in private. Actually, even when they fought The Book of Darkness and first called Excelion and Zanber, Nanoha and Fate did _not _have the requisite reinforcements in their devices, which Amy warned them about. Those two are just that good. As far as 'normal' devices, everyone Noriko is working with are building Midchildan devices, they're just customizing them. The differences are like those between the original forms of Raging Heart and Bardiche – one was optimized for shooting, the other optimized for melee and capable of generating an energy blade. So, 'normal', just customized normal. The politics Hughes' people discussed was mostly reactionary yes, but that is how the worst laws get passed, after all. As for how bad the civil war is, just wait until next chapter:).

TheWhiteMonk: Yeah, Hughes is not in any sort of enviable position. The American reaction will show up again, somewhat later however. As for Laura's summer, we'll see.

notcroaker: If you want to stick to the Honor-verse comparisons, Pritchart is a good match for Hughes. Marterosian's really just interested in protecting his girls. It's a crazy world, going crazier every day, and most of the support he's used to is vanishing as the Circles destroy themselves, so he's focusing on what he can save.

Advent000: Things are progressing, yes, and actually a little faster than I originally planned. Like I told Kell Shock, most of the second-years are producing Midchildan devices, just with personal twists like Bardiche's energy-blade.

Taeniaea: apologies for not replying to your reviews for the two prior stories, had (yet more) computer issues. I'm starting to think Microsoft and AMD are conspiring against me. But thank you for the reviews, and the compliments.


	10. 09 Shanghaied

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-09 – Shanghaied-

"I didn't think one of them would blow up this soon," Yussef commented as he climbed the trail beside Signum, both of them once more in armor. "Eventually, yeah, but this soon? It's barely October."

"The twins have had a bad weekend," Signum replied, "bad news from home, of some sort. Laura merely had the misfortune to be the first trigger they found. Though I will admit, it was a rather more colorful tantrum than I expected."

It was early on a Sunday morning, technically still during breakfast, but the two of them were already heading out. Uriel's time-table for Shanghai was due to kick off in a little over half an hour, to catch as many Revenants as possible during the morning shift change. The morning had already been exciting, however, thanks to Rhys and Saeryn. Laura had come barreling into the dining hall with her usual exuberance, dragging the twins with her and already apparently going on about something or other she was going to have them do. She had been talking too fast and too low for Yussef to make out what, but everyone had heard the result.

The twins had already been manifestly unhappy with Laura's manhandling of them, and one – Yussef still could not tell them apart – had shifted from grumbling to outright yelling as Laura reached the buffet table. She had wrenched free of Laura's grip, shouted a surprisingly long string of insults and complaints in several languages, before devolving into Latin as her volume rose. Then she bolted, taking her sister out the dining hall's doors and disappearing into the woods. It had not taken long, Aria and Lotte had barely been out of their chairs to intervene when the girls ran, but it was very public.

"Laura's dragooning them into whatever it was probably didn't help," Yussef commented.

"No, but something of this sort was inevitable, especially with those two. We, including you and Laura, have been pushing them to be more sociable than they are used to, in a very short period of time. It is necessary, in my opinion, but not easy, especially for them. Noriko and Shamal will sort them out before we return." Signum shrugged, then told him, "Now is not the time to be worrying about them, however. Despite my assurances to Thorngrave yesterday, it is very likely that we will be attacked by the Revenants."

Yussef nodded, but he was less concerned with the Revenants than with the possibility of a double-cross by Thorngrave. "How far are we allowed to respond to an attack?"

Siggnum gave him a long look before answering, and he was fairly certain she was contemplating his suspicions. "As far as necessary to guarantee our security," she replied after a moment, "but in the event of deliberate attack, we are to fall back, rather than sustain any battle. If a combat response is required, Hayate-sama will lead it with Vita and I. Understood?"

"Understood, ma'am." Yussef was actually rather glad of that. The sense of exposure he had felt the day before at Kansai was worse today. This would actually be the first time in his life when he would go into battle – and he fully expected to be involved in the battle, one way or another – without his boys at his back, and he silently promised himself he would push the Myrmidons to get their devices done sooner. _The sooner they have devices, the sooner I can have them watching my back on these missions,_ he reasoned, _and the sooner I can relax._

When they reached the overlook, Signum brought out a cell phone, dialing the number they had been provided to reach Schuster. The resulting discussion was short, to the point, and abruptly terminated when she snapped the phone closed. "They've already begun," she told him shortly, "almost an hour ahead of schedule. Stay close, the teleport will be tight and fast."

Yussef did not answer, but lifted Zulifqar into his hand, settling with his back to Signum's. The teleport was fast, too fast for him to get much detail, as he had hoped to do. The transition was abrupt, enough to unsettle his stomach, but not as bad as the teleport into New Delhi had been. Finding himself suddenly in mid-air was worse, though Zulfiqar brought up Desert Wind automatically, keeping him from an ignominious plummet.

Signum brought them out at five hundred meters, well above any local buildings and clear of the combat, but almost directly above the target building. Looking down, Yussef could see that, as she had said, the strike had started early. The roads surrounding the office building were cratered and collapsed, the result of demolition charges placed in sewers and service tunnels during the night to cut off underground access. Just outside of those, a variety of vans and light trucks were parked haphazardly, blocking the streets and surrounding the building. Yussef counted at least fifty people on or just behind those vehicles, watching the building's ground floor and waiting for anyone trying to break out.

The building itself was nondescript, a normal office building. Four floors, spread out over a small suburban block, white facing and a lot of narrow windows. A pair of civilian helicopters were hovering over the roof, having dropped the Black Dogs just after the demolition charges blew. The roof access door was laying on the roof a meter or so to one side of its housing, the only obvious sign on the building of anything untoward.

"Damn," he muttered, "I wanted to see them breach."

"So did I," Signum muttered. "Stay up here, I'm going to go express my displeasure to Schuster."

Yussef watched her go, then set himself to slowly circling the area, descending to a hundred meters or so above the helicopters. He turned most of his attention inward for a moment, settling into a half-trance, before initiating a basic scan of magic in the area. While Laura was apparently capable of detecting anything without even trying, Yussef and Noriko still needed to enter some level of trance to perform deep scans. They could detect gross magical events without that level of focus, or things in close proximity, but not at this range.

Almost immediately, he found something very disquieting. He could detect several circles, building strong, complicated rituals, that were unpleasantly familiar. Shaping another spell, he said, "Signum-sensei, I'm detecting wolfpacks forming. Outside the Dogs' containment ring."

She did not respond for a second, then asked, _'How many?'_

"At least six, but I haven't made a full circuit yet." Another one appeared in his mind's eye, so he added, "Seven, now. At this rate, we're looking at about a dozen." _What is it with the Circles and the number 'twelve',_ he mentally complained? Everywhere the Circles were involved, that number always popped up.

_'The plan didn't call for wolfpacks,'_ Signum said, more thinking aloud than talking, _'and Schuster says that plan has not changed.'_

"It's an ambush," Yussef stated, "but aimed at who?"

_'It doesn't matter. Lock on to the ritual circles and give me their locations. We'll wait to see who they go after, and react from there. If they come after you, fall back. I'll rejoin you and extract us then. Until then, I'm going to monitor from here.'_

00000

Even ten minutes later, Rhys was still jittery, quivering with anger, embarrassment, and fear. Laura had barged in before she and Saeryn had even finished getting dressed, rambling on about processor cores and redundancies. She had given them just enough time to get decent, then dragged them off to breakfast, insisting they get moving _immediately_. "You two're so far behind, I'm ashamed of you! Slacking off this last month, I swear everyone's going to think I've been neglecting my minions! Now come on, come on, food first, then fun."

Simple shock and Laura's unrestrained energy had them in the dining hall before Rhys finally managed to wrench herself free of Laura's grip, and by then her temper had been frayed beyond recovery. She knew Saeryn had been almost as angry, but her sister's self-control was legendary, so it had been Rhys who blew up. In itself that was embarrassing, singling her out from her sister as it did, but the situation made it so much worse. The fact that she was certain she was going to get yelled at by the teachers, when the whole intolerable situation was so clearly Laura's fault, just made it worse.

It was not until they were well into the woods that Saeryn managed to calm her down enough to stop running, and even then Rhys refused to let go, or stop moving. Part of her was thinking that, if she just kept moving, maybe they could run away home. Mostly, though, she just needed to get away, from everyone and everything at the school, even if only for a little while. Once her headlong flight abated, she and Saeryn just walked in silence. They did not need to talk about it, since they already had, repeatedly. Their father's call Friday had made it clear just how precarious their situation was, how precarious his situation was, and now they had to worry about him as well as their mother, on top of Laura's shenanigans.

They found Noriko in a small clearing, shortly before they reached the crest of one of the passes. The scars of February's battle were still there, overgrown somewhat but obvious given that they knew what they were looking for, and the princess seemed to be studying one such site, where the rocks were bare, stone and surrounding trees covered in hash-marks. She turned when they came into view, and beckoned them over. Rhys would have turned and walked away, but Saeryn reversed their earlier roles, dragging her forward by the hand.

Noriko watched them approach before asking, "Are you two all right?"

"We are calming down," Saeryn told her, "but not all right. I do not believe that will be possible so long as we are here."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Noriko replied, which made Rhys start. That simple apology was the first time someone had not told the twins 'it'll get better'. "Especially given what your father told Hayate-sensei yesterday."

Both of them froze at that, remembering what their father had told them about what the Circles now believed of their presence at the school. "We are not spies," the two of them stated bluntly.

Noriko smiled at them, shaking her head. "Not what I meant. He told Hayate-sensei that, due to circumstances in America, he won't be able to bring you home any time soon. He even doubts if he will be able to bring you home for Winter Break. Given that you are so uncomfortable here, that is very bad news, for which you have my sympathies."

"We do not..."

Rhys, not at all interested in this line of conversation, cut off her sister to demand, "How did you know we were here?"

Saeryn gave her a dirty look, but Noriko merely shrugged. "You crossed two lines of wards on your way up here, with a third line about here and a fourth up in the pass itself. Also," she gestured behind them, "Megan was following you all the way up here. We're worried about you." Rhys whipped around, only to find a wolf half hidden behind a tree, watching them steadily. Noriko said from over her shoulder, "Go ahead back, Megan-chan. I'll bring them along in a little while." The wolf nodded once, then turned and vanished silently into the trees.

Anger rising again, Rhys turned on Noriko, demanding, "Is there anywhere we can get some privacy?"

"Your rooms," Noriko replied, ignoring Rhys' tone again, "and almost anywhere you can arrange to be alone. Not the workrooms, of course, those are continuously monitored for safety, but we aren't watched all that closely. We know where you two are because you caused quite a stir this morning, and Aria-sensei was concerned you might try to leave campus. I talked Shamal-sensei and Hayate-sensei into letting me talk to you first, so here I am."

"Why you? I should think one of them would be better, given their greater experience," Saeryn sounded significantly calmer, but Rhys could tell her sister was just as angry as she was at being tailed.

"You will talk to them, eventually," Noriko answered, "but I thought you might find it easier to talk to someone closer to your age. Even I get intimidated, sometimes, talking with the teachers."

"You did not seem so eager to help when we asked for it," Rhys muttered.

"Of course not. You did not want help, you wanted to escape a lesson in socialization. You will not always be able to work only with people you like, only with each other, and Laura's mentoring will show you that. We did not anticipate things going this poorly so quickly, however."

"It would not be so bad, had she not stormed into our room without permission, before we were even up," Saeryn countered.

Noriko frowned a little at that, "Did she at least tell you _why_ she's so excited?"

"No," the twins answered together, before Rys continued, "and that is immaterial."

Noriko gave them a small smile, "Is it? She probably forgot, in her excitement, a habit which is one of Yussef's justifications for always referring to her as 'the ditz'. Hayate-sensei told us last night that she has decided to allow the two of you begin designing and building devices. You'll do it under close supervision, and you'll have to convince all the teachers you're ready before they will let you proceed with construction or activation, but you can make the attempt. Laura was given the task of getting you started, and keeping an immediate eye on you, which is actually a good thing. She understands the design and construction side of things much better than Yussef or myself. Though, after this morning..."

Noriko cut off abruptly, head whipping around to stare up to the pass, eyes narrowed. A moment later, she muttered, "Senbonzakura, set up." The jewel on its chain over her forehead flared once, then Noriko disappeared in a bright pink flash. When that cleared, she was clad in red armor, fans in hand as she turned towards the pass. The sheer speed of it shocked Rhys, the abrupt shift from comfortable clothes to battle-ready taking less than a second. It was surprising enough that she did not register Noriko's order, and the princess had to repeat it. "Twins, I said go back to the campus, now." There was no friendliness in that, just command plain and simple.

Rhys was never one to take orders, and Saeryn was, in Rhys' opinion, even worse, especially given such abrupt commands. So Rhys was not surprised when Saeryn glared back and demanded, "Why?"

Noriko's expression became annoyed, "Something tripped the outer Deva wards, but they aren't reacting normally. Get back to campus, now!" She was cut off when something lunged out of the woods.

Rhys registered only a huge hulking gray mass before Noriko vanished in a cloud of pink petals that reeked of magic, cutting off her view of whatever it was at the same time. Still, it had obviously been attacking, and Rhys moved out of pure habit, squeezing Saeryn's hand a little tighter and bringing up her magic. The two of them had been combining their magic for years, even before their parents had thought to show them how they had puzzled it out, and now that combined power wrapped the two of them in the strongest shield they could produce.

"We have to go," Rhys muttered, starting to back up, but to her surprise, Searyn merely stood there. Looking at her sister, Rhys was surprised to find her frozen in fear, until she followed Saeryn's gaze. Just at the edge of the woods, a second gray figure stood, and like her sister, Rhys recognized it. "Seed," she whispered, in shock and fear, just as it lunged at them.

It slammed head-first into their shield, and barely slowed, physically plowing into both of them. Rhys lost her grip on Saeryn's hand, and then the thing back-handed her, sending her tumbling over the ground. She landed in a painful heap, but worry for Saeryn pushed to her knees. She saw her sister, a couple meters past the Seed, also struggling upright, but the Seed was facing her. Rhys watched it step towards Saeryn and panic flooded her. Seizing on her linker core with mental fingers, she dragged as much energy as she could and, even as the thing took its first step, focused that power into an attack. Voice high and harsh, she shrieked at it, "Not my sister! Zeus Buster, _strike_!"

The crackling bolt of energy that left her hands was far stronger than any spell she had ever attempted, a yellow lance of power surrounded by a crackling chaos of excess energies. She was, she knew, pushing beyond the edge of safety, risking burnout in that single strike, but could not have cared less if it saved her sister. She put all the fear, all her earlier anger, every ounce of power and feeling into that strike.

Only to watch it vanish as it struck the scaled hide.

But the Seed paused, turning its head to stare at her for a moment. When it turned fully towards her, she actually relaxed. _Saeryn is safe,_ was her only thought, _she can get away, now._

00000

Arlain slid around the corner of the door on one hip, rather than take the time to slow down, curling into a ball as he squeezed the safety release, and thumbed the detonator's trigger. The short sharp crack of the breaching charge was loud, even muffled by the wall, and the back-blast sent dust and debris billowing down the hall Arlain had just exited. He did not move even as two men lunged over him to go back out into the hall, listening to their boots thudding on the carpeted floor as they charged the now-open lift shaft. Early and Law would handle securing the shaft, now that the welded doors were out of the way.

That had not been the first sign of trouble, but was the most worrisome. The first sign had been the utter lack of Revenants on the above-ground floors. So far, thirty-five minutes into the strike, the only Revenants the entire force had encountered were two six-man security teams, mages but lower ranked. The Dogs had not even had to test their new rounds against the security teams, old-style magic and modern tazers fixed under their rifles had sufficed for the guards.

As he got back to his feet, shaking his head to try and clear the ringing, Arlain caught Uriel's gaze, and held up two fingers. Uriel shrugged, "Team Two's having the same problem we are with the stairs. They had an easier time getting in to the stairs, but the doors are secured on the far sides. I ordered them to hold at the first floor. We'll carry on from this way, they'll hold for any break-out..." Uriel cut off with a twitch, then his head whipped around to glare at a wall.

Glancing in the same direction, Arlain saw nothing but blank wall, and looked back. "Sir? Something wrong?"

Uriel snarled something Arlain could not make out, then shook his head, "Something I just remembered. Let's get down there before Early slaughters everyone we're here to capture."

Confused, but focused on the moment, Arlain settled for nodding his head, then shoving to his feet and out the door. The two of them exited the small office they had used for cover, to find Gershaw and Bogdanovich at the lift, Early and Law already gone, descending ropes anchored to the lift's frame. They took up station behind the rest of Team Three to wait their turns, and Gershaw was just about to go off the edge when Schuster interrupted over the main broadcast channel. "Black Dogs, hold position. We have a situation. Three One, quick report."

Uriel cursed once, then keyed his radio, "Sir, we're just about to drop down the elevator shaft. We'll probably have to breach each floor in turn. This will slow us down, but no worse than we expected. I suspect the Revenants have withdrawn to a secure floor underground. They're expecting a siege, but we can still get to them. Minor variance from plan."

There was a moment of silence, then Schuster ordered, "We're canceling the plan. There are twelve wolfpacks out here pushing our positions. Fall back on surface extraction points. The helos are already gone."

"Sir, we can still pull this off," Uriel protested, visibly upset at the order to retreat. "Your containment teams can hold for half an hour, even against wolfpacks, which will give us plenty of time…"

"Negative," Schuster shot back, sounding irritated but not actually angry at Uriel's questioning. "it's not worth the risk. The prisoners you've already gotten us will suffice. Fall back."

"Sir...!"

"What do you hear, Uriel?"

"Nothing but the rain," Uriel snapped, then blinked and froze. Both the response and Uriel's visible reaction confused Arlain, mostly due to the whipsawing from one extreme to the other.

"Want you come in out of the storm," Schuster said, "bring your boys with you. It's over, Uriel, we'll try again somewhere else."

Uriel snarled again, the angriest Arlain had ever seen him, then triggered the team-frequency. "Team Two, fall back on the main door. Team Three, out of the shaft and get moving. Team One will bring up the rear."

Arlain put a hand on his shoulder, leaning in to ask, "You all right, sir? Seem a little..."

Uriel shook his head. "I hate losing," he admitted after a second, as Gershaw helped Law out of the lift shaft, "especially like this. No real losses, just the possibility of loss. If we don't take the risks, how are we ever going to win?"

Arlain found only partially able to sympathize. He was not exactly happy to be falling back, but hardly worth getting angry over. 'Shit happens', as every soldier knows, and better to slip out of a trap than push too hard and get caught in it. At the same time, "Know what you mean, sir, but like Schuster said, we'll get to try again later. Attacking in another direction and all."

"Still not something I'm happy about doing," Uriel countered. Then he shook his head, "get your team moving, we'll be right behind. If we're leaving, let's not leave anyone behind."

00000

Yussef tracked all twelve wolfpacks as the focus mages came out of hiding. The circles themselves were set up in buildings two blocks back, but equally spaced around the target building. To his relief, the wolfpacks immediately set to attacking Schuster's containment forces, rather than rising to meet him. Two moved into blocking positions above the battlefield, but seemed content to let him be once they had chased off the helicopters.

Signum flashed past those two mages too quickly for them to react, slowing to join him, and for a minute, the two of them watched the battle unfolding. The wolfpacks were patently obvious, plowing through vehicles and mages with wild abandon. Signum shook her head, drew Levantine, and began building the teleport to take them back to the school.

Yussef interrupted her, "Sensei? Do you think Hayate-sensei would object to us scoring a favor with the Moderns?"

She gave him a questioning look for a moment, then a slight smile. "You want to join in, don't you?"

"Not directly," he replied. "I was thinking, though. While the focus mages are dangerous, the circles generating the wolfpacks are vulnerable. There are probably guards, there were back in February, but those proved less than effective against us."

"Do you have a plan?"

"One of us distracts these two on over-watch, the other starts disrupting circles. We probably won't do enough damage to break the counter-attack, not unless we want to start killing people, but we can buy Schuster enough time to withdraw safely. Break up one circle to eliminate the wolfpack, then move on to the next. They'll probably be able to reform the ritual, but Tai-yu-sensei told us the focus mages have to be in the ritual circle to start with, so…"

"Good thinking," she said, then dissolved the half-formed teleport, "Do you remember which circles are supporting these two?" Yussef nodded, but she continued before he could say anything, "Leave them for last. I'm curious to see if these vaunted wolfpacks can live up to their reputation, since I never got to fight one back in February. Go start breaking up the circles, but don't sit still for long."

Yussef almost laughed, seeing in that comment how Signum could so easily influence Laura. "I'll see what I can do, sensei," he promised, then bolted sideways. The two over-watch mages attempted to react, but Signum was on them in a heartbeat, spells striking at one while a vicious swing of Levantine almost caught the second. Yussef watched the fight only in part, to make sure they were not coming after him. He focused primarily on reaching his first target.

_I can go in after them,_ he thought, _but that would make it very easy to get stuck in close combat. On the other hand, I can bombard them from up here with relative safety, switch targets fast. Lot of property damage, though. _A glance behind, at the fighting around the target building, proved that a moot point, and Yussef decided for speed over precision.

Picking the first building he had noticed, he scanned it rapidly. Finding it, indeed even its neighbors, unoccupied, he shook his head at Schuster's predicament, and the Revenant's connections. "They set him up from the get go," he muttered, "I'd bet against Chen-chi, they dangled the target like a carrot on a stick until the Hughes bit. Tricky, but they waited too long to follow through." He reached firing position, roughly above where the wolfpack circle was, and aimed Zulfiqar at the building's roof. "Buster Cannon, full charge." He had extended the spell over the summer, drawing out the charge time to a full five seconds. His device was actually quivering in his hands as it reached full charge, and he ordered, "Fire!"

The blast crashed through the building's roof, then the floors below, until it hit a shield protecting the first floor. The shield liberated the energies of the buster, causing a massive explosion which rocked the building, loosing cohesion even as it absorbed the blast. Yussef was duly impressed, both that the shield had turned his initial spell and sufficed to absorb the blast, but there was no follow up defense when he dropped a second Buster Cannon, this one time to detonate at ground level, down the hole left by the first.

He was moving before the blast went off, aiming at his next target. An odd drawn-out rumble drew his attention back momentarily and he actually flinched in sympathy as the building began to collapse inwards. _A little too much power in that second strike,_ he reprimanded himself. It was hard to feel guilty, though, given the Revenants' stated plans for him and his classmates. So he turned back to his next target, and grimaced. Soldiers were appearing on the roof, quite obviously preparing for him.

They opened fire at range, and he rolled to one side and arced upwards. It made him a slightly better target, but would put him at an altitude they would have trouble reaching, by the time he was overhead. Another quick glance as he climbed showed Signum still mixing spells and sword-work to keep the two wolfpacks busy, and he shook his head. _I hope Signum remembers to break off once Schuster's people are clear._

00000

Saeryn had to struggle past her terror to get back to her feet. She had recognized the Seed on sight, remembered it from the tales their mother told them. Those tales had filled her mind as the thing charged, the very embodiment of childhood fears almost paralyzing her. Only Rhys' reactions and a lifetime of habit had let her share in building their shield. When the Seed crashed through it, she had been thrown to one side, tumbling hard over the rocky ground, but the impact shook her loose of her petrified state.

She managed to look up and was partly aware of the Seed moving towards her, but all her attention was on Rhys, and for a second she thought her sister would be able to escape. Then she felt the power, saw her sister's spell launch, and wanted to scream at her to just run, especially as that spell did nothing but attract the Seed's attention and doom her own chance at escape. She struggled to her knees as the Seed started charging Rhys, shaping her own spell to try and distract the Seed again. Simultaneously, she was praying silently, for any intervention, even random chance, even an Atlantean direct from Hell, anything to save her sister.

Her prayers were answered, by a shadow plummeting out of the sky. It struck the Seed's head, sending the creature's lunge plowing into the ground. Saeryn watched in shocked relief as the shadow bounced upward, resolving into Laura's armored form as she flipped in the air to land a meter beyond the Seed. She looked back and forth between the twins for a second, before commenting, "I'm hurt. You two came out here to play with these critters, and didn't invite me? I'm hurt, deeply hurt."

A shift of motion, and Saeryn choked out, "Watch out!"

The Seed was fast, though, swiping Laura's feet out from under her. She did not fall all the way to the ground, but the Seed came up after her, raking at her back with its other claw, carving five parallel grooves in the back of Laura's armor, snapping of a pair of vanes. It brought both claws back around for another pair of strikes, but Laura was aware now, and rolled with the second blow, blocking the follow on attacks. She lunged forward, landing a rapid series of blows to the Seed's side just below its arm, only to backflip away as it tried to backhand her, then lunged at her.

The construct was quicker to recover than Laura, though, seizing her ankles in one massive hand. It jerked her around as she yelped in surprise, spinning her around its head once, then flinging her sideways towards a tree with vicious force, far more than it had used against Saeryn. Who could only watch in surprise as Laura not only did not impact the tree, but landed in a three-point crouch on nothing but air.

Laura looked back at the Seed, and Saeryn saw a light in her eyes, something she could not recall ever seeing before, and a grin that was totally different from any of Laura's wide repertoire of expressions. For a moment, Saeryn was not sure what was more frightening, the Seed, or Laura. "Wow, fugly," Laura drawled, "You're almost as tough as Hayate-sensei promised."

"Stop goofing off, Chibi-ko!" The shout drew Saeryn's attention to the side, in time to watch Vita slam Graf Eisen into the other Seed's chin, sending it stumbling away from Noriko's flickering shields. "Get those two out of here!"

"Yeah, yeah," Laura called back, "gimme a sec."

She lunged forward off whatever she landed on, as Saeryn finally began to regain her usual quickness and stability of thought, letting her recognize what she was seeing. She saw Laura's lunge, felt the magic enhancing it and recognized the speed boost. She watched Laura block the Seed's slash and flip into a kick, first foot missing but the second catching the construct's chin hard enough to snap its head back, and realized the only magic the older girl was using was to maintain her flight.

Now upside down, Laura snagged the Seed's ankle as it rocked back from her kick, jerking it off its feet. It slammed into the ground, but tried to roll upright again. Laura did not let go, but extended her pull, even as she rose in the air, dragging the Seed along the ground, then arcing it into the air. She let go finally, when the Seed was airborne and traveling at an angle that sent it flying into the tree-tops. The Seed flailed, even as it crashed into the tree branches, struggling to control its flight and landing.

Saeryn was jerked out of her stare when Laura grabbed her arm, hauling her to her feet. "Come on, Wrack, get it together," Laura muttered, then pulled her into the air, moving both of them towards Rhys. She grabbed the other twin just as the Seed came crashing back out of the woods, and then the three of them were spiraling upwards, out of its reach.

Saeryn was partly aware of Noriko joining them a few meters above the tree tops, and that Laura let go of them without somehow dropping them. Despite the novel experience of free flight, all of her attention was on Rhys, who was swaying slightly, staring at her with oddly vacant eyes. Saeryn took hold of her, wanting to yell at her for being so stupid as to attack a Seed with magic, but something in her sister's face worried her too much. "Sister? Rhys?"

"Saeryn," Rhys whispered happily in a strange spaced-out tone, "you aren't hurt?"

"No," Saeryn reassured her, "what about you? What's wrong?"

"Little much power," Rhys muttered, reaching out to pet Saeryn's hair, "worth it."

"Let me check her, Saeryn," a new voice ordered.

In response, Saeryn pulled her sister tighter to her, at first. Then she saw it was Shamal, and very reluctantly let the blond woman take her sister, though she refused to relinquish Rhys' hand. Shamal held a glowing hand to Rhys' forehead, then down to her chest, and Saeryn shivered at the cold feel of the magic that echoed through her hand. "She'll be fine," Shamal told her after a moment. "She's pushed too far, but she's not burned out. She'll have to be careful for a couple weeks while we make sure, though."

With that, Saeryn was finally able to relax, taking her still semi-coherent sister back from Shamal. She curled around Rhys, but turned her attention outwards to finally take stock of the situation. Noriko was hovering nearby, watching her and Rhys. Further away, Aria and Lotte were also airborne, to either side of Hayate, watching the clearing. Looking down, Saeryn saw Vita and Zafira tag-teaming one Seed, pinning it in place while white light flickered and flowed around it. Laura was circling the other Seed, making fast raking strikes, not so much attacking it, as frustrating its attempts to escape the clearing. It was apparent, even to Saeryn, that the two Seed were no longer attacking, but attempting to escape, lunging at openings rather than at mages.

Despite her strikes, Laura still managed to shout, "Hey, Hayate-sensei, look what followed me home! Can I keep it? Huh? Huh? Can I?"

"No, Laura," Hayate called back, "not even if I can hold them, which is proving surprisingly difficult."

Shamal moved closer, pulling Saeryn and Rhys with her, asking, "Their magic resistance extends to Deva magic?"

Hayate shook her head, "Not entirely, no, but they are... slippery, for want of a better term. The bindings don't form like they should, and slide off to lock on nothing. I'll get them, it's just going to take me a few minutes. Vita, Zafira, Laura, how long can you hold?"

"This is getting boring," Vita protested, "But a while yet. Not much magic, not against these things."

"Take your time, sensei!" Laura's response was much more exuberant, "I haven't had this much fun since June!"

00000

New Spell: Zeus Buster. An on-the-fly creation of Rhys', this combines a traditional buster spell with some basic electrical effects. Rhys created it from instinct and panic while striving for greatest possible hitting power.

00000

Author's Note: I was so, so, _so_ tempted to post this chapter short, put Rhys' section at the end and stop there, leaving the resolution until next chapter. I haven't posted a good cliff-hanger in forever, and it was so tempting. But I didn't, because I'm just that nice, aren't I?:) It's a little short, because the responses to both attacks will flow better as a new chapter. Since I know someone's going to ask, the differences between this Seed attack and the one in Egypt are three-fold – preparedness, devices, and experience. The wards and standing response plans (plans generated in response to Egypt) gave Hayate, and even Noriko and the twins, more warning than the Egypt guards had, and thanks to Egypt Hayate and Company are aware of the Seed & their capabilities. The devices give the campus' defenders far more raw power, which is still useful for physical enhancements and flight to evade, even in the face of the Seeds resistance to magic. Finally, Hayate and her Knights have faced 'magic immune' foes before, and have more experience in magic combat than any ten Circle mages. Laura's just that crazy. I tried not to totally 'Worf' the Seed, but how successful was I in that?

Also, a note on timing – most of my chapters take place in a single day. Last chapter 'Before the Storm', took place over a Friday evening and Saturday morning. This chapter occurred the following Sunday. I'll update the timeline on my profile page in a couple weeks.

00000

pfeil: yep, I'm still making payments to Gates. I could switch to Linux, but I'm not that much of a tech-junkie. After fifteen years and six versions (seven counting DOS!) I've got Windows wrapped around my little finger, Linux would take too much work to get used to. As for AMD, Intel's always struck as too full of themselves, similar to Mister Jobs' devoted followers, though not as bad.

Kell Shock: Oof, that was an embarrassing mistake, given how often I've called other people on it. All fixed now, though, thank you! Last chapter was a lot of set-up, I'll admit, but for more than just this chapter. I'd argue that Zafira and Hayate have also 'taken students under their wing', but you are right that they haven't been as fully-involved as Signum was with Laura. On the other hand, that's because Laura's a double handful by any standard. The bullets are an experiment, and it will take a high rate of fire even against a non-device mage. By Uriel's calculations, against a non-device non-wolfpack mage's shields, it would take a full clip from most pistols to get a single round through to the shielded mage. Not a good rate of return, but infinitely better than the usual rate of 'zero'. You are also correct in the potential for shield variations, but that would depend on knowing precisely how the bullets react to the shield, which may take quite some time, depending on scale and scope of use. As for the Circles' opinion of their wolfpacks's chances versus Hayate, that would depend on who you talk to. Most Moderns would say 'little to none, overwhelming numbers are necessary'. Most Revenants would probably say 'fair to good, depending on tactics'. Both of which are right and wrong, just as Yussef's predictions are right and wrong. Given how personal magical combat is, a lot of it would depend on just how skilled the individual mages involved are.

Taeniaea: hope you liked this one, too.


	11. 10 Aftermath

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-10 – Aftermath-

Yussef and Signum arrived back on the overlook a surprisingly short time after they had left, far sooner than they had planned, and he, for one, was very grateful to see the campus again. It was never fun, getting shot at, even if the weapons shooting could not get through his defenses, and getting shot at without his boys at his back, had been exceedingly unpleasant. Worse, The Revenants had displayed a surprising amount of flexibility in responding to his efforts and Signum's, which argued for more surprises from them down the road.

Signum matched his pace as they rounded the campus' gate, "Are you all right?"

"Yes, just a little tired," Yussef replied, "lot of spells in a short time-frame, lot of dodging. Learned some things, though, maybe even something Toushiro and Ichigo can use. Whoever was guarding that last circle was a sneaky bastard, built a mirror-shield of some sort." He grimaced in mild embarrassment, then added, "I almost got shot by my own buster."

Signum actually chuckled, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. "Don't worry about it. You did well, for a fight we weren't supposed to be involved in. Think over what happened, I'll want to hear your thoughts on how your Myrmidons would handle today's battle, from each of the three sides. Today would make an excellent basis for a training scenario, I think."

"Probably," Yussef nodded, thinking it over now that she had given him the idea. He would have said more, but Signum stopped abruptly. "Sensei?"

"No one is walking about," she said, nodding to the campus.

The valley's tree cover made it difficult to see more than the buildings, but Yussef could see into the courtyard in front of the dorm, a few spots in the quad. No one was in them, and he picked up on Signum's nerves. It was Sunday, however early it still was, and a nice enough day, if a little chilly. Someone should have been out and about.

Signum's flat stare twisted into a glare for a moment, then she sighed and relaxed. "They're in the Library," she said. "Seed attacked the campus."

That sent a spike of fear down his spine. Tai-yu's briefing on the Seed of Leviathan had been thorough, and very intimidating. "What? Was anyone hurt?"

"According to Hayate-sama, Rhys came close to burning herself out," Signum said, "Laura, Zafira, and Vita were knocked around a little. Noriko has a couple cuts, and Saeryn is apparently shaken. But nothing severe, nothing permanent. Let's fly, I want to make sure she's not sugar-coating anything. She has a habit of doing that, when giving me bad news."

They flew down from the trail, settling to the ground right at the main entrance to Library, to find Zafira and Marcel waiting for them. Zafira followed Signum right in, but Yussef hung back, quirking an eyebrow at Marcel. The French boy shrugged slightly, "Don't ask me, I was still eating breakfast. One minute we're talking about the twin's tantrum, the next Laura's exploding out the doors and every teacher on campus is airborne and armed to the teeth."

"You didn't see the attack at all?"

Marcel shook his head. "Juliet and Allison wanted to go lend a hand, but Luke and I got everyone else up on the dorm roof. Figured we could fly up to the road to get away if things went south, carry the new kids. By the time everyone was up there, Hayate-sensei was coming back with everyone else. She had a pair of Seed on tow, took them into the classroom building, I think to a workroom. One of the twins was carrying the other, Noriko had a couple nasty scratches, and Laura's armor got busted up some, but nothing seems permanent."

"Allah is merciful in all things," Yussef muttered. Marcel's report was enough for Yussef to relax, the tension and worry fading away. "I'm guessing there's a class going on?"

"Yeah, looking at the Seed," Marcel nodded, pulling the door open, "Hayate-sensei wants everyone in one place while Aria and Lotte check the perimeter. The Library's the easiest place to defend, so she pulled us all here. How was your little field trip?"

Yussef snorted and shook his head, but could not suppress the smirk at Marcel's jaunty tone. "Ambush, but not the one I was expecting. Got shot at, did some shooting of my own, watched Signum-sensei beat the snot out of a couple Revenants. You'll get the whole thing later, but I'd appreciate you not sharing it with the guys. You're going to help me do that in class."

Inside the Library, almost everyone was gathered in the main room, sitting at various tables in the first floor common area, staring at a cluster of floating screens. Most of the screens were displaying file information that he remembered from Tai-yu's lecture on the Seed just after the Egypt incident, a few with what he recognized as current diagnostics, but most displayed failure and error warnings. The flickering and failing readouts from the workroom's shields were particularly worrisome.

The largest and central screen, showed a pair of ugly scaled creatures prowling about one of the workrooms, and it took him a moment to recognize the Seed of Leviathan, even with Signum's warning. _Uglier than I expected,_ he thought, _and weren't they supposed to be sort of thin and wasted?_ The report from Egypt had described creatures a good bit ganglier than these hulking brutes. The two he was looking at were anything but thin, muscles solid beneath the scales, and their posture and attitude was, for lack of a better term, confident. One of them was sporting a visibly broken jaw, but that did not appear to be bothering it particularly. The two Seed were prowling about opposite sides of the workroom, but not pacing. _Merciful Allah, they're searching,_ he realized with a shiver, _looking for weaknesses, for a way out._

His ruminations were, predictably, interrupted by Laura. "Hey, Yu-chan! Welcome back! Like my new pet? I'm calling him Snuggles. I think Vita-sensei's calling hers Ripper. Jealous?"

"Those things are not pets," Natalia half-shouted, in a long-suffering tone of someone repeating herself.

"Whatever, Boatlights, you're just jealous that Snuggles likes me better," Laura laughed back, sticking out her tongue. Natalia blanched at that, then slammed back into her seat, spinning to put Laura behind her.

"Laura," Hayate sounded anything but amused, "that was rude. Also, she is correct, the Seed are _not_ pets. They are contained for now, but I am going to have to reinforce those shields every day." She sighed, and the chastising tone faded to one of sadness, "If we cannot figure out how to return them to stasis, we will have to put them down. They are simply too dangerous."

Signum was right next to Hayate, now, but staring at the Seed. "Do we know where they came from, this time?"

"Not yet," Hayate replied. "It only happened a few minutes ago, Signum. Aria and Lotte are out checking the perimeter, looking for any signs. Vita," she gestured to a side table, where the red-head was bent over a terminal with Allina and Niranjana next to her, "is working with Allina and Niranjana to see if there was any sort of sightings by the public. Now that you are back, I would like you and Zafira to backtrack the Seed physically, see if you can find out where they came from. I suspect, however, that their trail will lead to the sea."

"Hayate-sensei," Yussef asked, "how likely do you think it is that this was coordinated? The attack here, the ambush in Shanghai..."

Hayate shook her head, "I do not think they are connected, not right now. Oh, the timing is suspicious, but... this feels random."

"If it was planned, the Circles would have to know that, however interested we were in Shanghai, only one or two of us would be there," Signum added. "An ambush there makes sense, an attempt to eliminate a couple of us at a time, certainly. But attacking here? Not with so few Seed. Admittedly, these two could be all that are available, but even so, there are far more efficient ways they could be used, even with as little control was we suspect the Revenants have over them. Think of how well timed the ambush in Shanghai was, Yussef. Just long enough to get Schuster's forces deep, but not long enough to risk the trap's bait being caught."

"I think this is another case of the Seed being attracted to magic, as Hayate proposed for the Egypt incident," Tai-yu suggested. "The campus is the most magically active site in Japan at present, just as the rituals are in Egypt. The Seed being attracted to magic would explain why they attacked here and in Egypt, and in such small numbers. It also makes sense that they can sense magic and hunt it down, if they truly were designed by the Atlanteans as anti-mage weapons. Plus... this just feels random. A psychological weapon, rather than strategic or tactical. We can never know if or when more Seed will appear, thus we must prepare for them to appear any time, any place.

Hayate nodded with her, asking, "Signum, are you okay to head out now? I want to get as much information as quickly as possible. I've already sent Hughes a preliminary message, but I'd like as much information as possible before I actually speak with him. He should be calling shortly."

"I think he'll be busy for a while with his own problems," Signum commented. "He lost people in Shanghai, for no real return."

Hayate blinked at her, then her eyes widened, "Oh, kami-sama. I forgot, in all the excitement."

Signum smirked, "I understand, Mistress. Your kids, and all. I'll head out now. Could I borrow Megan, do you think? Her nose should prove useful, and she can shift big or small enough to escape, if we run into something else."

Megan shoved a hand up almost instantly, "I'll go, sensei. I promise to stay out of trouble. I'd just need a couple minutes at the fight scene to get the scent."

Hayate looked doubtful, but nodded slowly. "You still have your gem?" Megan nodded, and Hayate returned the gesture. "You can go, but the first sign of trouble you take to the air and trigger the gem, understood?"

While Hayate spoke with Signum and Megan about their mission, Yussef slid over and sat down behind Laura. Annoying as she was, she was also his best source for information, being easier to get talking than Noriko or the teachers. "The twins with Shamal-sensei?"

Laura looked back at him and nodded, "Yeah. She put Ruin to sleep, and Wrack won't let go of her, so they're up in her office. Ruin put together some kind of amped-up buster on the fly, tried to burn herself out."

"Stupid of her," Yussef muttered without thinking.

Laura back-handed him for that, a light swat to the shoulder that nonetheless expressed her displeasure. "Shut up! You've got brothers, right Yu-chan? What would you do, with a Seed standing over them and no device to hand?"

"Drop a tree on it," he countered. "Rhys panicked. Understandably, a forgivable mistake, but she nonetheless panicked." He dodged the next swat, "Fine, fine, I'll leave her alone. Even you should know I wouldn't have said that where she could hear it. We've all been that stupid before. She going to be all right?"

"According to Shamal-sensei, yeah."

"What about these things," Yussef asked, gesturing to the image of the Seed.

Laura stared at them for a few seconds, and the humor she had displayed earlier faded. "Those things are scary, Yussef," she said after a minute. "Hayate-sensei said these things are tough as mage-armor, so I hit Snuggles with both feet at somewhere around thirty miles an hour, plowed him face-first into the ground hard enough to dig a two foot trench. He was up and swinging as soon as I landed, never even slowed down. It was a fun fight, once the twins were clear, but... it was smart, too. I started fly-by's, keeping it busy until Hayate-sensei could bind it, but almost as soon as I started that, it started trying to back off. They came in on an easy target, and the instant things went against them, they both started trying to fall back. They're _smart_."

"You sure it wasn't just pre-programmed?"

"Stop trying to put my Snuggles down," Laura said, shaking a finger at him. "They fought when it was just Vita-sensei and I, but as soon as Zafira-sensei arrived ahead of the rest, that _instant_, they started trying to fall back, working together. No, these boys are smart. Maybe not math and science smart, but they're not dumb animals. On top of how tough they are... it was fun, Yu-chan, but I don't think I'll do it again if I have any choice. If it wasn't for Hayate-sensei, we'd have had to kill them to stop them.

"Oh, and that magic invulnerability? Yeah, normal shields and armor can take it a little, but Ripper blew through Noriko's Cascade in a heartbeat, didn't even slow down. Her petals weren't strong enough to stand up to the magic-negation effect. She had a couple scratches Shamal-baa-chan fixed, but her armor looked like a dish-rack, more gaps than red. Scary things."

"Leave the Seed for us," Marcel offered. "We'll let you have the wolfpacks."

"Deal," Laura replied instantly. "Though... be careful of them. They're as fast as I am, reflexes and speed, strong enough to break my armor and Riko-chan's without necessarily connecting. Don't stay within arm's reach, don't let one of them hit you."

"Not planning to," Yussef replied. "Like I said, drop a tree on it."

"Preferably while said tree is still rooted to a nearby mountain," Marcel added. "Thirty miles an hour? Merdre."

"Somewhere around there," Laura repeated. "You can have these things, Marcel, I'll stick to humans. At least with humans I know where the limit is, where to stop."

"Hayate-sama," Aria called from the door, "we've finished our sweep. Nothing, just a physical trail where they came over the pass and triggered the fourth line of wards. They destroyed all the Midchildan and Velka wards as well, but their natural immunities appear to have dissipated, rather than triggered, those. Other than that, nothing in the area that doesn't belong here, Mistress."

Hayate sighed, visibly relieved, before nodding. "Thank you, Aria-san. Signum, go ahead. The rest of you..."

"Ah, Hayate-sensei?" Noriko stuck a hand up, "Could we move back to the dorm? I was thinking, to get our minds off this for a bit, we could all do with a little mutual embarrassment."

Lotte audibly whined, "Not that torture device... Signum, I'm going with you!"

"That will be fine, Noriko, though not everyone has to go. As there appears to be no further threat, you're all free to resume your normal activities here on the campus, though you are still not allowed out in the woods, yet. Not until the wards are rebuilt."

00000

Almost an hour later, Laura plunked down in a chair next to Noriko, giggling madly at the continued complaints of everyone in the dining hall. "I warned you all," she called back, "but you insisted I take a turn. It's your own fault!"

"Yes, you warned us," Noriko agreed, rubbing her abused ears to try and clear the ringing feedback. "Kami-sama, Laura, that song didn't even require singing, just shouting in time to the beat, and you still made it... worse."

"It's a gift," Laura laughed, then frowned, "and don't you go insulting my man Vince. He's good, for a pretty-boy pop singer."

"Motley Crue is not a pop band," Mariachi corrected her from the stage, "despite the objections of the rest of the heavy metal community. Why did you inflict that self-absorbed garbage on us?"

"It's not garbage! This is a party, and _Kick Start My Heart_'s a great party song! Lots of beat, lots of speed, it's all about having fun."

"Unless you're the one singing along," Mariachi countered.

"Tche, well duh! I warned you all I can't sing."

"That wasn't singing, Laura, that was shrieking," Noriko said. "Remind me never to let you try that again, unless there's someone we're trying to question."

"Wouldn't work," Marcel replied, "not legally. You're not allowed to torture prisoners, whether you're at war with them or not. Civilized behavior and all."

"Oh, shut up, Marcel-chan," Laura muttered, "I'm bad, but I'm not that bad."

"The courts won't buy that argument," he replied, to which she stuck out her tongue.

Looking at one back corner of the room, Laura grinned and asked, "Riko-chan, think you'll get Cid-chan to sing?"

"Not in a million years," Noriko answered. She caught Cidela's eye, then smiled and waved towards the 'stage'. Cidela blanched, shook her head vigorously, and resolutely returned to her book. "See? Still too shy. Poor girl would probably have a heart attack, even if it is just us."

Noriko's impromptu karaoke contest had only been partly successful. It was distracting enough, especially with Toushiro's and Laura's hammed-up attempts at singing, both horrible enough to have drawn cat-calls and insults galore. The only problem was, everyone was still quite aware of why a distraction was necessary, an awareness which was apparent in constant looks out the door and the fact that everyone was clustered in just two groups, by year, with the second years closer to the doors.

Not everyone had followed along from the library, but most of both classes were present, mostly for the sense of safety after the attack, but also for the rare opportunity to laugh at each other without fear of reprisal. Only Allina, Niranjana, Mercedes, Yussef, Verner and the twins were missing, of the students, and per Noriko's decision, everyone present except Mariachi was singing at least once. Mariachi was exempt, on the grounds that he was 'trained', and thus had an unfair advantage, though that exemption got him stuck running the machine and playing 'judge'.

So far, for a bunch of amateurs, they had not been too bad. Hesitant and embarrassed, yes, but only Toushiro's utter failure to keep to any sort of rhythm, and Laura's inability to remain within shouting distance of 'on key' had been actively bad. Most of them were relaxing enough to actually enjoy it, Chen-chi and Jun even managing enough daring to join in ribbing several second-years.

Laura let the lack of conversation roll on for a while, joining in with the crowd picking on Ichigo's efforts at the microphone. He was all over the place trying to pull off some Japanese rap song, but hamming it up so much no one cared what he was trying to sing or how well he was doing it. She saw Shamal slip in through the main doors, settling down next to Cidela, but Shamal only shook her head when Laura gave her a hopeful look.

It was not until Ichigo finished and Natalia started her turn that conversation resumed, Esmeralda settling gingerly into the chair next to Noriko distracted both of them. Laura cocked her head ninety degrees sideways and asked, "Something up, Ezzie?"

Esmeralda gave her a confused look, then nodded slowly. "I, ah, have a question for Noriko. About Friday."

"Friday?" Noriko said, then nodded, "The trip to Kyoto is making you nervous?"

Esmeralda nodded, "After today, and rumors I heard about last year..."

"Last year was nothing," Laura boasted, "not Kyoto, at least. It was over too quick, and Ta-chan was way too scary-cool. This trip'll be a breeze. More of us, less of them, and we're so wrapped up in wards we can't sneeze without Shamal-sensei popping up to ask what's wrong."

"It's still kind of scary," Esmeralda protested. "I mean... we've been attacked here, where Hayate-sensei's at her strongest. What's to stop someone from trying again in Kyoto, where we'll be vulnerable?"

"This was not a directed attack," Noriko reassured her, "it was an accident, random chance." Esmeralda gave her a doubtful look, but Noriko continued one, "Even if it was deliberate, think of how we are going to be organized the trip. Three groups, mingled first and second years. Hayate and Lotte with one, Signum and Zafira with the second, Vita and Aria with the third, Shamal at the palace for backup and coordination."

"Plus Riko-chan, Yu-chan and I each taking a group," Laura added. "I think I'm with Vita-sensei, right?"

"Last Hayate-sensei told us, yes," Noriko answered. "You see, Esmeralda? I admit, there is some chance for trouble, but the chance is small, and the response to it will be overwhelming. If it will help, though... if you are not doing anything this afternoon, I could work with you on your shields, after Yussef's class, if he holds it today. Or some afternoon this week."

"Thank you, Noriko," Esmeralda agreed, "that would help."

"This afternoon, then? Bring anyone else in your class who's feeling nervous, I'll see if I can't reassure them, too."

"Last singer," Mariachi called, drawing their attention. He was standing at the microphone, grinning across the room, "Come on, Cid-chan. Everyone else had taken a turn, it's only fair."

Cidela started, staring at him for a second, then started to shake her head, but Shamal leaned over to whisper in her ear. Cidela gave her a doubtful look, then nodded slowly. She started making her way up to the stage, but it was painfully obvious she was already embarrassed. She was trying so hard not to actually look at anyone, stroking Rafiq's head where he peeked out of her collar.

"Cid-chan, don't worry about it," Laura called, feeling guilty for Cidela's embarrassment, "just 'cause we made fools of ourselves doesn't mean you have to."

"I... I'll sing," Cidela managed, "just... please don't laugh? I haven't done this before."

"We won't," Noriko promised, "but Laura's right, you don't have to do this."

Cidela gave her small smile, "Okaa-san asked, and… so, well..." She ducked away to take the control panel from Mariachi and pick her song, but was visibly shivering with nervousness.

That communicated itself to everyone else, each in their own way feeling guilty and embarrassed because of how uncomfortable they were making Cidela. Laura looked back to Shamal, and found the quietest of their sensei projecting a very serene, almost expectant, air – except for the first two fingers on her left hand, just visible under the table from Laura's position, twitching at her skirt. _'Oh, lordy,'_ Laura sent to Noriko, _'Shamal-baa-chan thinks this'll be good for her or something, but isn't sure. For what I'm about to do to you, Riko-chan, I'm sorry, but you're going to have to help me distract everyone.'_

_'Not yet,'_ Noriko replied, also giving Shamal a glance, _'I don't know if Cid-chan can actually do this, but she should try. In the event that it goes poorly, it would be better to cover her escape, than keep her from ever finding out if she can, ne?'_

_'You say so,'_ Laura replied. She disagreed, but this was Noriko's area of expertise, so she went along for now. Very privately, however, she started planning the best way to distract everyone, _I think stage one of Mercedes' embarrassment, the trick's going to be getting anyone to notice. Maybe I can launch Riko-chan out the front doors? We're far enough away from them, everyone would notice her sailing by overhead. But her reflexes are good enough, she'd probably catch me. Her and the chair? Or maybe just pick her up physically and toss her in Marcel's lap screaming 'lover's quarrel'. They'd both pitch a fit at that..._

Cidela never quite turned around to face them again, just stood a little straighter, facing mostly towards them, both hands wrapped around the microphone in a death-grip with her eyes screwed shut. She visibly sucked in a breath, just as the music started, then began singing. For the first few lines, her voice was thin and whispered, even through the microphone, but with the third line, picked up strength and steadied down.

_'Listen,'_ Noriko told Laura, _'just at the edge of reach, Shamal-sensei's helping her, singing with her telepathically.'_ Laura reached, but could not find what Noriko was describing. _'A pity,'_ Noriko replied to her complaint, _'it's beautiful.'_

By the end of the first chorus, Cidela's knuckles were no longer white, and by the end of the second, she was no longer standing quite so stiffly. She never opened her eyes, or moved from her position, and her voice retained an indefinable discomfort, but given the gentle flow of the song, and it's twisted but romantic lyrics, that actually helped. By the time the song faded, everyone in the room was staring silently at her, and utter silence greeted her final lines as they faded out with the music.

That silence reigned for a good twenty seconds, before – for the first time in living memory – someone beat Laura to the punch. Lunging half out of her chair, Chen-chi pointed an accusing finger at Mariachi. "Damn it, Mariachi! You knew! You knew she was that good! You rigged it!" She threw up both hands, falling back in her chair with a thud, "Aarrgh, my odds! You just blew all my odds out of existence!"

"I knew no such thing," Mariachi replied with a grin, "but I guessed. Listen to her talk, she's got a good voice, so I figured she'd be good at singing, if she wasn't scared off. Odd song choice, though, I expected something in Arabic."

"Okaa-san likes it," Cidela muttered, apparently not noticing the microphone still in her hands.

"Vita-chan introduced me to it," Shamal said as she walked up to the stage, "the band generally does not appeal to me, but I liked that song. It describes Cid-chan and I rather well, if in an odd sort of way." She wrapped Cidela up in a hug, finally getting the microphone away from her, and whispered something into the girl's hair.

As the two started to leave the stage, Laura called out, "I suppose there's no chance of an encore?"

Cidela froze in place and blanched again, staring at Laura like a rabbit facing a semi, until Shamal gave her a little push. Shamal gave Laura a repressive glare, "That was unnecessary, Laura."

"Sorry, Cid-chan, just a joke," Laura apologized, before turning to Shamal again. "Can I see my minions yet?"

Shamal shook her head, "Not yet, Laura. They have had a stressful enough day without more of your antics."

"I'm not stupid, sensei," Laura interrupted, letting her smile drop. "I'm not going to go off all hyper on them, not right now. But my girls got jumped by something that gave _me _a hard time. I need to see them to be sure they're all right, figure out how to get them moving again."

Shamal stared at her for a second, then sighed slightly and ruffled her hair. "They'll be fine, Laura-chan. Rhys is sleeping off the strain, and I put Saeryn to sleep as well, since she was so stressed over her sister. They won't wake up for a while yet, not until after lunch. I'll let you know when you can see them."

"Thanks, Shamal-baa-chan," Laura grinned again, then ducked out of Shamal's reach before the healer could recover from her surprise, and bolted for the door, "Oi, K-chan! You're putting on too much weight, let's go work out! If I beat you to the ring you have to run laps!"

Yussef barely dodged Laura's exit, looked around questioningly, then shook his head. "Not going to ask. First years, it's ten in the morning on a Sunday, and you all know what that means. I'd like you all to join me in the main workroom, I've got a little exercise in mutual defense I want you to try. Ten minutes."

00000

"Hello Akira," Hayate said as she walked out onto the deck that evening, "I had expected Takashi."

"Good morning, My Lady," Akira answered with a bow. "I'm afraid My Lord is unable to leave his current project at this time. It is unstable, at present, and he must monitor it."

Hayate cocked an eyebrow at that, curious what could Takashi could be working on that was so delicate, "Current project?" Akira just stared at her for a few seconds. "You aren't going to tell me, are you, Akira?"

"My Lord requested that I do not," he confirmed. "He sent me with information on the morning's events in Shanghai, and to inquire as to events here. His wards were triggered and disrupted."

Hayate almost decided not to tell him anything, given how annoyed she was that Takashi had not come personally, especially with such a thin excuse. But Akira was just as capable of refusing to tell her anything, however respectful he was being towards her. Briefly, she related what had occurred that morning, though she glossed over the twins' roll. Akira offered no comment or question, merely listened politely until she finished.

"You were fortunate," he commented, "that Noriko was out there. Without her delaying them, the Seed may well have reached the campus proper. Your evaluation of their cunning is also unpleasant, though not entirely unexpected. I will inform My Lord, though I doubt he will be encountering Seed any time soon. I assume Signum has provided you with a review of the Shanghai mission?"

"Yes," Hayate nodded, then waved for him to continue, "but I would like more information, if you have it."

"Some, mostly regarding the immediate aftermath. Hughes gained a total of eight prisoners from this raid, all security personnel from the facility, all Ops mages, journeyman rank. The Revenants' casualties aside from the prisoners are unknown, but presumed to be fewer than ten, as only wolfpacks engaged Hughes' people. In exchange, the Moderns lost six dead and thirteen to seventeen wounded, all from the supporting forces. The Black Dogs themselves managed to escape unharmed, with nothing more than bruises and scrapes, and from the sound of them when I left, they are overly eager to try again. My Lord and I expect the team will do something rash, probably in Central America, which they can reach easily from their own resources.

"There is some evidence that the Revenants placed this facility solely as bait for a trap, mostly in the speed and efficiency of their ambush. There is also, however, evidence that someone warned them the Dogs were coming. According to Thorngrave, the access routes had all been sealed recently, and the entire facility felt 'in use'. It was not set up to be an ambush target, and became such very recently. Also, late reports from Hughes' Ghosts indicate that a number of the facility's more powerful mages were evacuated from Shanghai that very morning. Hughes will, no doubt, investigate that possibility rigorously.

"The Dogs' equipment appears to have functioned mostly as advertised. Two of the wolfpacks were felled by concentrated fire, a third by a combination of fire and magic. Beyond that, after Signum and the boy engaged, the Revenants appeared to restrict themselves to seeing off Hughes' forces. The pull back to the airfield and subsequent take off were harassed, but not seriously opposed.

"I am comfortably disappointed by most of Hughes' people. They reacted as we have come to expect when Circle mages have their plans disrupted. But the Dogs... they were admirably fluid and flexible in their responses, steady. Determined, as well. Schuster attempted to evacuate them first, but they remained on-scene and provided rear guard all the way out. The Frenchman was still shooting when the last plane lifted off. They are what Yussef wishes his followers to be, and all the more dangerous for it. I would recommend eliminating them now, save I know you disapprove of such practicalities, thus I will only suggest monitoring. Close monitoring, especially if Hughes creates another, similar, team. Until My Lord is free, however, that is all I have for you. I can provide some observational statistics on the Dogs' weapons, but I was not actually present for the raid."

"Thank you, Akira," Hayate said slowly, walking to the rail to lean on it. "You said you think the Dogs will strike again soon. Why?"

"They are a proud group, an elite force," he answered with a shrug. "Such people think in terms of reputation and face. They have had two missions to date, one aborted to watch your people clean up after an attack of mythical creatures, and the second a raid on a vulnerable enemy that turned out to be a trap. While neither failure is their fault, technically, both missions were nonetheless failures. Pride will force the Dogs to redeem those failures as soon as possible."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Hayate muttered, thinking back on how heavily Takashi and his servant relied on their own reputations.

"Hence my certainty," Akira agreed.

That was, in a way, reassuring. The fact that the Shanghai mission had failed was vexing, and the losses painful and depressing. But she had been in the Bureau for too long, seen too many missions reversed in similar ways, been on both sides of such reversals. The fact that Hughes' people, his foremost people, were still that ready to fight was a good sign. An even better sign was that they were evincing so many traits that Takashi and Akira were familiar with, that she was familiar with. A familiar foe, after all, was a predictable one.

"Keep an eye on Schuster's force, please," Hayate ordered, "let me know when and where they strike next, also how well they do. Also, I wish to see Takashi here again, physically present, within the next few weeks, after the Kyoto trip. The first years need to meet him, and I have questions about the magic, things I can't puzzle out in Sara's notes."

"I will so inform him, My Lady," Akira answered, bowing again, before lifting off the deck to fly up the valley.

Zafira stepped up next to her a moment later, "Not going to press him on Takashi's 'project'?"

Hayate shook her head, "Not Akira, no. He is respectful enough towards me, but his loyalty is to Takashi. He will be very polite about it, but he will not tell me anything. Takashi, however, I will question until I have answers. I do not like him being 'unavailable' like this, and I especially do not like the fact that, despite his wards triggering, he still has not put in an appearance himself. Given his usual reaction to any danger towards me, even the hint of it, he should have sensed the Seed and arrived to destroy them before they ever reached Noriko and the twins. What is he working on that is so critical he would ignore such an incident?"

"Something more dangerous," Zafira mused, "either a weapon against the Circles, or a weapon of the Circles. Perhaps he has run into Bureau entanglements while searching for Kriegsen, or is co-opting Revenants into spying for him. I have no doubt that, whatever he is doing, he considers it more important to your safety than the Seed were dangerous."

Hayate glanced at him in surprise, "I thought you disliked him."

Zafira snorted, half laugh half insult, "I do dislike him. He is rude, arrogant, amoral, and honorless. That does not mean I do not understand him. He is almost as dedicated to you as we are, and has suffered greatly for no reason. It is his methods and scruples I take issue with. You will find that Signum shares my view. Vita actively despises him for her own reasons, while Shamal finds him extremely distasteful. None of us care for Akira in the least."

"What do you think of Akira?"

Zafira shrugged, "He is as we were, a program bound to a single device and purpose. He fulfills that purpose as he was created to, and I can respect that. But, again, methods and morals. Akira reflects his master's faults."

"Not quite," Hayate argued. "Oh, in type, yes, but Akira lacks Takashi's restraint. Understandably, he as created for just that reason."

Zafira shrugged, "It makes no difference, both are dangerous. Were they as dangerous to you as to everyone else, I would have argued long ago for killing them. As it is, I just wish he was not involved as frequently as he is. But, speaking of restraint, Yussef's boys are ready to begin construction. Nothing fancy in their devices, not like most of the girls' designs."

"Even Luke, Toushiro and Ichigo?"

Zafira nodded, "They're actually a little further along. Were they not insisting on progressing together, those three probably would have finished earlier this week, instead of on Saturday. Part of it is that the boys have mostly been working to a common design, based on Yussef's. Most of it is because Laura and Yussef make a formidable pair, even when they're not directly working together. If they would stop being so childish towards one another, they would be truly impressive."

Hayate smiled at that, nodding agreement, "Let's not go hoping for miracles. I am impressed they finished their designs so quickly. Are the designs in the files?"

"Yes, you can review them whenever you like," Zafira told her. "Basic intelligent devices, aside from the three Velka modifications."

"I'll look them over tonight and tomorrow," Hayate told him. "Juliet and Allison are almost done, Cid-chan's design has been done for weeks, if Shamal will ever admit that. They're moving along quickly. November, you think, before they start activating the devices?"

"For most, maybe late October for a couple of them," Zafira agreed, then shook his head, "things will be very busy, once they do."

Hayate's smile widened at his aggrieved tone, "It won't be that bad, Zafira. They'll be too busy figuring out how to control the devices to get into much mischief. None of them are Laura, after all."

00000

Saeryn woke well before her sister, still sitting on the couch in Shamal's office, Rhys' head in her lap. Shamal herself was sitting in a chair pulled over in front of the couch, resting a green-glowing hand on Rhys' forehead. "It's mid afternoon," Shamal told her without opening her eyes, "Rhys will wake once I have finished scanning her. She strained her magic a great deal this morning, very nearly burned herself out. I put a limiter on her, to prevent her using magic, until I can verify that she has recovered.

"I understand how restrictive it will feel, but if her linker core is stressed before it heals, she could permanently cripple herself. I will check on her twice a day, until she has healed, and once she is healed, I will remove the limiter and let her get back to her magic. I would appreciate it if you could keep her calm about it. She needs the time to heal, and the more she worries at the limiter, the longer it will take her to recover. Can you do that?"

"She is my sister," Saeryn answered softly.

Shamal opened her eyes, giving Saeryn a questioning look, then smiled slightly and nodded. "I understand. I feel the same about my siblings. Are you feeling better? You were rather distraught this morning."

Saeryn flushed, remembering some of what she had said, especially when they tried to separate her from Rhys. "My apologies," she said, somewhat stiffly.

Shamal waved that aside, "All is forgiven, it was reasonable. But you are feeling better?"

Saeryn nodded, "Yes, sensei. You are certain she will be all right?"

A long-suffering smile and tone, "Yes, Saeryn, she will be fine. So long as you keep an eye on her."

Once Rhys woke, Shamal asked both of them a few more questions, looking for any sign that her scans had missed something her patients noticed, but they both protested they were fine. "I'll leave you two here, then. When you're ready, go ahead back to the dorms, though..." she trailed off, and sent a troubled glance at the door, "Laura has asked to see you when you wake. Do you want me to tell her to wait? If she's not outside the door, she'll be down stairs. She has been very worried about you all day."

Saeryn tensed at that, glaring at the door herself, and started to shake her head. Then Rhys spoke up, "We'll see her." Saeryn looked down at Rhys in surprise, but Rhys was staring at the door.

"I'll send her up in a minute," Shamal told them, standing and moving to the door. "Please, try to stay calm. If she starts to bother you, just call for me, I'll make sure she leaves you alone."

Once Shamal was out, Saeryn ran a hand through Rhys' hair, "Why did you agree to see her?"

"She saved you," Rhys replied. "I couldn't, but she did. I remember that much."

"She was just there for the fight," Saeryn protested, "for the fun of it."

Rhys shook her head slightly, "No, she saved you. Why she did it doesn't matter. She did it."

"Sister..."

"She saved you," Rhys insisted. "We owe her."

Laura opened the door and glanced inside before entering. When she did come in, she closed it gently and leaned against it for a moment. "You two all right?"

Saeryn glared, "Why do you all keep asking that?"

Laura shrugged, "Because Shamal-baa-chan never says anything beyond 'she's all right'. Woman takes doctor patient confidentiality way too far. So, you two okay? Nothing broken, no cuts, no burn-out?"

"We're fine," Rhys answered her, "I'm just a little unsteady."

Laura grimaced, "Yeah, been there." She walked across the room, settling into the chair Shamal had left, resting her elbows on her knees. "Sleep a lot. You'll miss some stuff, but that'll include the nasty parts of getting better. Also, ask for ice cream as often as you can. You won't always get it, and it'll only help you feel a little better, but ice cream's always good."

Saeryn could not help giving her an incredulous look. "Ice cream? You intruded on us to talk about _ice cream_?"

"Nope, just thought I'd throw it out there," Laura replied with a grin. "I came up to see if you two are okay. Those Seed scared me, and I had Paradox and Sensei's training to back me up. You two are new to this, so..."

"We are fine," Rhys told her, "so long as we are together, we are fine."

Laura nodded, shrugging acceptance of that, "Cool. Then on to the fun stuff. Riko-chan told you about Hayate-sensei's permission, right?"

"We can begin our devices," Saeryn said.

"Yup," Laura's smile became huge, "and I have high hopes for you. Between us, we should have your devices designed in a couple weeks, and I'm counting on you getting them built before any of my classmates. I have my reputation to maintain, after all."

Rhys sat up slowly, demanding in an annoyed tone, "Why are you helping us?"

Laura blinked at Rhys, apparently very surprised by that. "Huh?"

"Why are you helping us? This morning we yelled at you, we've always resisted your interference, we've never given any sign of enjoying your presence. Why did you save us, why are you helping us, why are you still pushing?"

Laura cocked her head to the side. "I saved you because it's what we do. We're the good guys, saving people's in the job description, didn't you read it? Besides, you're classmates, kohai. More importantly, you're my minions. I'd be a pretty terrible Knight if I couldn't get my minions up to snuff, don't you think? As for you two getting pissed at me... what, you think you're the first people to yell at me? Please. My best friend back home's a girl named Heather. She decked me year before last, right in the middle of lunch at school. Wouldn't talk to me for _days_. Still my best friend, short of Riko-chan or my brother. I'm used to getting yelled at, doesn't mean much unless it never stops."

"We never stopped."

"You never meant it, not really," Laura countered. "You're scared of people, I get it. You'll get used to it, in a while. Besides, it's either my way, which is fun, or Riko-chan's way, which is all touchy-feely and sentimental. I doubt you two handle 'sentimental' very well, do you?"

"How do you know we do not mean it," Saeryn asked?

Laura shrugged, "You don't spend as much time causing trouble as I do without learning how to tell when people are annoyed in the moment, or seriously pissed. You've never done anything to make it personal, you've just been scared. You like the way you were, you're scared of change." She paused, straightening in her chair and raising her right hand, "As a duly authorized agent of chaos, it's my bounden duty to make you change," she giggled, and dropped back to resting her elbows on her knees, "but I figured you'd yell eventually. Doesn't mean much, just means I have to let you cool down. The Seed kinda got in the way of that, though. So, devices?"

Saeryn looked down, to find Rhys looking at her. Rhys shrugged silently, causing Saeryn to sigh. Her sister was, as usual, leaving it up to her to explain the decision they had already made. "Devices," Saeryn said after a moment. "We have some ideas, but lack the proper resources to begin planning."

"Ideas like what?"

"Power," Rhys stated.

"Durability," Saeryn added.

"Flexibility."

"Strength."

"Velka," Laura interrupted the litany with a grin eerily similar to that she had shown the Seed.

00000

Author's Note: Were it not for FFN's ridiculous rule about 'no lyrics whatsoever', I would have included the chorus to the song that Cidela sang, worked into the description of her efforts, which would have made for an all-around more powerful scene. As it stands, if you want the full impact, the piece is _The Ship Song_, written by Nick Cave. The specific version referenced is a cover by Concrete Blonde, done as a duet between Concrete Blonde front-woman Johnette Napolitano and guest singer Steve Wynn. It's a very good piece, and a bit twisted, but the chorus beautifully describes Cidela's and Shamal's relationship.

Akira used the term 'Ghosts' above. The Ghosts have been mentioned before, in AB, but I don't remember if the explanation was clear. The term is used by the Circles as a nickname for their Intelligence Division, because they are supposed to be invisible, able to go anywhere, and impossible to find.

Also, a semi-serious question. In Academy Blues, I devoted an entire chapter to the activation of each of the three new devices (Zulfiquar, Senbonzakura, and Paradox). Should I do that again, or simplify? It would give the other kids a moment to shine, but would also take a _long_ time to slog through. I have ideas for how to do both, but I am curious as to audience preferences.

00000

Kell Shock: thank you, and corrected (unless I forgot to upload the corrections again…:). Only thing is the, question mark after 'he mentally complained' is correct. I should have structured that a little differently, but when a quote (or thought, in this case) ends in a question, but the non-quote descriptor follows, the punctuation goes at the end of the descriptor. There's another example above. I usually avoid it, because it's confusing, but once in a while it just flows better with the descriptor following. Sorry for the huge number of errors, when I was editing I got too caught up in my own story to pay attention. Shanghaied means exactly what you found, and I admit my reasoning's a little convoluted – mostly, the chapter's titled as such due to where the events take place ('Kyotoed' would've sounded funny). The term could also be applied to the twins, though, at least from their perspective. Hughes has had some bad luck operationally, Shanghai worse than Egypt, but it is possible to loose battles and win the war, though you usually try to avoid that. The Dogs probably could have escaped the Revenants' trap, but it would have been much closer without Signum and Yussef, with a lot more casualties. The Seed are quite definitely 'smart', as detailed above, but a question does remain as to specifically how smart. A supercomputer, for contrast, is capable of surprising 'intelligence', but simultaneously being profoundly stupid. Hayate could learn a great deal about the Seed, if she can find a way to keep them contained.

pfeil: The Revenants would probably be surprised that Laura even fought the Seed. They would more likely believe she simply commanded it and it obeyed. Noriko did sense the Deva wards triggering, but sensing Deva magic is not necessarily difficult – identifying and countering it are more difficult. Remember, a lot of the wards Hayate placed are to warn not just her, but her Knights. Also, all the 'normal' wards were dissipated, and Noriko would have sensed that as well as the Deva wards. In all honesty, had she gotten full info from the wards, Noriko probably would have fled with the twins instead of going on the defensive. You are correct about the typo, and it's all fixed. Thanks.

CrimsonDX: Glad you're still reading. The twins are definitely an interesting challenge, trying to balance how they used to be, how they are, and what they are becoming. I can see the justifications for changes made and upcoming, but have to be careful to fit those in (I've already missed a couple, I think, that I'm going to have to work in soon). The Seed were definitely out-gunned, but there is a reason for that, one that should be fully clear within the next ten or twelve chapters or so. Remember, it's not 'chickening out' if it's a tactical retreat in the face of superior forces! The kids' new devices should start showing up in a couple chapters, depending on how some of the other incidents flow out.

Seaotter: I know I should have a Beta, but I've never really been comfortable with the idea of a Beta. I know all the logical arguments and agree with them, but there's the whole emotional issue of hating relying on anyone else. Thank you for the note, though, it's fixed. As far as names, I tend to pick names I've been exposed to – the twins were named after a pair of twins in a war game I play, who also provided some of the basis for their personalities. If I don't have a name on memory, I'll go online, there are 'baby name' websites that will give ethnic lists, a few other sites that will offer name meanings, again usually by ethnicity. That's how I found 'Niranjana', 'Noriko', 'Kaemon', 'Chen-chi', and a few others. As I told CrimsonDX, the kids' devices will be showing up in a few chapters, though the twins' will be the last I unveil.

TheWhiteMonk: The incident in Shanghai, and the (latest) attack on the campus are bad signs, and there will be repercussions, but there are still some fluctuations to go before things really heat up. In all honest, I've thought about breaking this story up into two, one of the set-up, and one of the actual 'Mage Wars', just because of how long both would be.

Baughn: I understand your points, in both reviews, and agree with them, to be honest. Endless Waltz is not as solidly grounded in the school as Academy Blues was. But I'm afraid there's a limit to how much I can accommodate more 'school scenes' without making the entire story unbearably long. As it is, I won't be surprised to hit sixty chapters, or even more, just because of all the set-up I've already got to do to bring about the ending I want. There will be more school scenes, as part of the ebb and flow of the story, but I'm afraid they will fade out eventually. Even from current perspective, regardless of future events, the students and teachers all have a front-row seat for a civil war which is being fought, essentially, over who gets to kill them when. That's a bit more brutal and depressing than they like to talk, but that is the practical situation they have to consider. As for number of warriors, I can think of seven who are not fighters, and two or three more who are borderline. Non-fighters include Cidela, Niranjana, Allina, Natalia, Didier, Esmeralda, and Chen-chi. Borderline include Noriko (she can fight, and her flashiest spell is the Cascade, but her forte is 'people skills'), Mariachi (music, which has application in battle but also outside of it), Megan (she's a shapeshifter because she enjoys it, not because it makes her more dangerous, though the liger form was chosen specifically for that reason), and potentially Werner, once more about him is revealed and determined (I'm still figuring out how his phlegmatic personality works). As for more varied devices, not likely among the Myrmidons (except Mariachi, his is going to be all sorts of fun), but Cidela's, Megan's, and Natalia's will all be built around different focuses. Allina and Niranjana, despite their focus on hacking devices, aren't building combat devices. Think about it – the number of computers and networks more difficult to access and heavily protected than a device can probably be counted on one hand. If they can hack a device, hey can hack _anything_, which is their goal. Anyhow, I'm sorry to hear you aren't enjoying EW as much as AB, but hope you can still enjoy it some.

Taeniaea: Glad you're enjoying the story. Laura's comment popped into my head while I was reviewing the battle, actually, just as something I could not imagine her _not_ saying.

nolrai: Thank you for the compliment, and the review!

Advent000: Laura had fun, but balanced fun (per her testimony above). The twins have now been given a fairly powerful reason to open up, if they follow Rhys' interpretations, though Laura, being herself, probably won't make that easy. As for the Revenants… well, how much did they predict, and how much were they told? Or were they told anything, and Takashi's just spreading rumors to make Hughes' life more difficult? Or is Hughes spreading rumors to mislead Hayate, or even his own people? Can you tell I'm having fun with the Moderns/Revenants plot-line?:) Thanks for the review!


	12. 11 Kyoto Redux

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-11 – Kyoto Redux-

Verner was relieved, in a way, when his parents decided to give him a few days after the incident before calling. It meant he had plenty of time to anticipate their reactions, and to prepare counters for those reactions. It also gave him a bit of time to make sure his own emotions were settled, and to observe the reactions of his classmates.

The second years were frighteningly blasé about the whole thing. Aside from Laura's joking around, none of the second years seemed the least bit concerned. Even Cid-chan and Niranjana, the two second years he had pegged as most likely to panic, shrugged it off. Their confidence in the teachers and themselves was comforting, though he had to question the wisdom of such confidence. But the only concern any of them showed was that he and his fellow first years were adversely affected. Noriko, in particular, had been quite thorough in checking with each first year.

The reactions of his fellow first years were far more normal, in his opinion. Esmeralda had been the most vocal in her worries, though she had seemed to him to be seeking reassurance, more than action. Noriko's tutoring them on shields calmed Esmeralda quickly enough, though she remained a little clingy. Kaemon, Ekavir, Jun and himself were all fairly calm about it, both in accepting Hayate's reassurances and in taking advantage of Noriko's tutoring, though the other three boys remained nervous for several days. Chen-chi became a little more skittish and flighty than usual, Mercedes took to pestering Lotte to teach them to fly, and the twins remained their usual inscrutable selves. It was Didier who had the worst reaction, hiding in his room until Monday morning, most of that time with Shamal or Aria, and retreating further into himself.

His parents did not finally call until Thursday evening, just after dinner, pulling him away from an odd card game Chen-chi was creating, which involved flash-cards of magical concepts, any number of players, and ten-yen bets. He would have preferred a chance to win back some of his losses, but comforted himself with the knowledge that Chen-chi herself was getting cleaned out by Kaemon and Mercedes. He walked out front of the dorm before opening his cell phone, looking for privacy with space.

"Good morning," he said, having to focus somewhat to say it in German.

"Good evening, Verner," his father answered in a mildly amused tone, "is your presentation fully prepared, or would you like another day or so?"

Verner chuckled, "I don't plan everything, father. But yes, I have given some thought to reassuring you and Mother. You certainly waited long enough to call."

"We have been speaking with your teachers," his father replied. "Mostly good news. From the sound of it, were it not for your classmates' habit of wandering, no one would even have been in danger."

"Mostly true," Verner agreed. "The defenses worked just as Miss Yagami promised they would, despite the attackers in question being essentially immune to most of the defenses. The Seed were easily contained, even if Miss Yagami did have to put them down later. None of the injuries were serious..." He continued rattling off the list of reasons not to worry about the attack that he had come up with, until he heard his father chuckling. "Father?"

"Just thinking, Verner. We Germans have such a reputation for over-organization and stoic pragmatism, alles en ordenung and all that rubbish. I was just wondering if whoever came up with that stereotype had met you. You are too calm for your own good, boy."

This was an old argument, and one his mother was worse about, but as he had told Esmeralda and Chen-chi, it just made things easier not to freak out. "I'm sure I'll have my share of overly emotional moments, father," he answered, "but Sunday's incident was hardly worth getting excited over. Concerned, yes, cautious, yes, but it was all over before I knew anything about it. Why worry about what is over, done with, and minor?"

"Tell that to your mother," his father countered. "First thing your teacher told us was that you were fine, and she still hyperventilated. Practically collapsed in tears."

Thin and muffled by her distance from the receiver, Verner could nonetheless hear his mother shout, "I did not! That was you, you overgrown child!"

"Well, somebody hyperventilated," his father chuckled, "though I'll admit, my memory of that far back's a little hazy. You know how us old folks are."

Verner continued to speak with his father for another half hour, his mother another twenty minutes or so beyond that, reassuring them that he was fine and, more importantly, comfortable remaining in Japan. They never quite lapsed into the seriousness he had expected, his father's habitual joking remained strong throughout, but Verner could tell they were worried about him. It was a nice contrast to the usual semi-cavalier impression people had of his family.

By the time he folded the phone closed, it was fully dark, only the internal lights of the buildings disturbing the stars. He took a couple seconds to watch them, then turned and headed back in, following a few steps behind Mercedes, Marcel, and Yussef returning from the library. So he had a perfect view as the two boys, with an automatic air, held the door open for Mercedes, she stepped through, and Laura's vengeance struck.

There was a flash of light, and Mercedes' uniform vanished. Not completely, fortunately for everyone present, as it was replaced, but what was replaced was significantly more revealing. A frighteningly short skirt, a tiny tank-top, and knee-high boots, all in black leather. The worst part was, right in the middle of her lower back, was a brightly colored tattoo – Yussef's name and her own, in a bright red heart, flanked by smiling cherubs. Beneath it was 'Yu-chan and Mercy sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G.'

Mercedes did not seem to notice, until she reached the middle of the room and the descending silence became total, every eye on her. She looked down, took a minute to study her knew appearance, then looked around. Laura was nowhere in sight, however, so Mercedes shrugged, and headed for the water jugs set on the lead table. "I've worn worse."

Glancing at Marcel and Yussef, Verner found the first staring at the second, and the second so red in the face it was a miracle he was not bleeding through his pores. Verner could not tell if Yussef's reaction was embarrassment or rage, but either way he was obviously speechless. So Verner moved up saying, "It's not the clothes, Mercedes, it's the ink." She looked at him oddly, until he explained, "Your back. Go find a mirror, then go find Laura."

Mercedes' eyes narrowed, and she twisted around to try and get a look, then her gaze swept over the room again, searching the faces. She finally came back to him, saying in a flat voice, "I'll be back in ten. Be a pal, and when I come back, tell me where she is." Then she stormed off to the Girls' Wing, short skirt bouncing dangerously.

Only when she was gone did a blank spot by the door burst into laughter, before rippling to reveal Laura leaning against one of the doors, hands wrapped around her middle as she bent over letting out the suppressed laughter. "Ahaha! The look on your face, Yu-chan! Bwahaha...!" She was practically falling over she was laughing so hard.

Marcel caught Yussef's wrist, and Verner raised an eyebrow at the sight of glowing energy, then the French boy was leaning in, whispering something urgently. Yussef still looked murderous, but allowed Marcel to pull him back outside, leaving everyone else in the dining hall displaying a variety of reactions.

Tai-yu was the first teacher on the scene, walking across the dining hall from the entrance to the Girls' Wing, where she had no doubt passed Mercedes. She walked over to Laura, who had slid down the door in the meantime and was now sitting there, hands resting on her knees, still chuckling sporadically and grinning hugely as she got her breath back. Tai-yu crossed her arms, giving Laura a long look, before saying, "A set of illusions?"

"Uh-huh," Laura nodded, "three of 'em! Variation on Allison's Cloak to hide her real clothes, one to show the new clothes, and a last one to put the tattoo on."

"You need to work on your integration," Tai-yu informed her. "The three illusions were not smoothly joined, nor were they placed seamlessly. I expected better from..." A wordless shriek, dampened by intervening materials of the dorm structure, cut her off, and everyone glanced towards the rear half of the Girls' Wing. Tai-yu muttered something, gesturing, and a shield slid into place over the entrance to the wing, then she turned back to Laura. "You understand, fun and games are one thing, but that... Laura, you are getting far too personal, taking far too many risks. I will speak to Vita-san, she will keep you close during the trip. When you return, we will work on your illusions. I believe you have Tuesday afternoons free. Hayate will discuss your official punishment at her leisure next week. Until she does, you are grounded. For now, I suggest you return to your room to finish packing for tomorrow, while I try to calm poor Mercedes. Go."

Laura was still grinning and she bounced to her feet. She bowed to Tai-yu, then smirked again, saying, "Totally worth it," before vanishing once more into Allison's Cloak of Light.

Silence resumed for a moment, long enough for everyone to hear Noah, "Man, Alli, why'd you have to go and teach her that? Now we won't even be able to see her coming."

"Shut up, it was worth the price," Allison snapped back, "and don't call me that!"

00000

Noriko wound up having to wait until they were on the bus headed into Kyoto, before she could finally catch up to Mercedes. Even then, she had to ask Esmeralda to move further back, which naturally clued Mercedes in that this was not going to be chit-chat. Still, Noriko managed to keep up a normal conversation with her, and some of the other first years, until they were fully on the road.

"So, Mercedes," Noriko began, "about last night..."

Mercedes instantly frowned, "I don't want to talk about it."

Noriko sighed, and shook her head, "You're going to have to, you know."

"Shouldn't you be talking to Laura? She's the one who went overboard this time."

"I would," Noriko replied, "except Laura's up front sandwiched between Hayate-sensei and Shamal-baa-san, while they deliver their second set of lectures. Not real easy to get to her. So I thought I'd come see how you're doing. I know she hit closer to home than she expected to."

Mercedes grimaced, and turned out the window. For a second, Noriko thought she would not reply, then Mercedes said, "It wasn't 'close to home', it was 'too believable'. My joke about her and Marcel, no one would believe that in a million years. Me and Yussef, though? I've spent too much time with him already, other people or not. _Everyone_'s going to be on my case about it, now."

Noriko blinked at that, surprised by a tone she was uncertain was actually there. "Do you like him?"

"Gah, you see!"

"I'm not making fun of you, Mercedes," Noriko reassured her, resting a hand on the other girl's arm, "I'm asking. If you do like him, if you really are interested, I'll make sure everyone leaves you alone, as much as they can. It won't be perfect, but it would be about what you could expect if you actually asked him out."

Mercedes whipped around to hiss, "Ask him out? He's what, thirteen?"

"Actually, he's the same age you are," Noriko replied with a grin, "fifteen, just like Noah, Toushiro, Niranjana, Allison, Laura, Juliet, and Mariachi. Half my class actually, and only Luke and Natalia are older. Have you noticed any of us paying much attention to relative ages, though?"

Mercedes started to say something, then hesitated, and shook her head, "No, not really. But you're all weird about things like that. I mean, look at Luke. He's the oldest student here, but he follows Yussef around like a puppy."

"A lieutenant, I'd say," Noriko countered. "Yussef is training Luke to be his second. Hardly a 'puppy'. Look at me, though. I'm in the younger half of our class, but the others all look to me, to some extent. Even Natalia, as private as she is, has come to me for help or a friendly ear. So, are you interested in him?"

Mercedes glared at her for a second, then shrugged. "Maybe. He's a nice guy, well behaved, smart, good looking. But he's also a kid, and some of his ideas are just plain _weird_. He gets all flustered and dodgy whenever I ask about joining the Myrmidons, for instance. So... I don't know."

Noriko nodded at that, then let it slide, "You're right about the believability. No one would believe Laura was interested in Marcel. But no one would believe Laura and Yussef are interested in each other, either, and look how long that rumor has hung on."

"That's different," Mercedes said, "those two are such enemies, they're at each others' throats so often, that the rumor of them liking each other is a great way to make both of them squirm. Me and Yussef, though... that's going to be believable, everyone's going to pick up on it, and there goes my chance to learn anything from him outside of class."

"I could teach you as much as he can," Noriko offered, "though not quite in the same areas."

Mercedes grimaced again, "Yeah, but... the more I've heard about them, the more I've heard about the Myrmidons, the more interested I've become. I thought, originally, that they were some sort of fight club deal, but it's more than that. Those guys are seriously determined to watch each others' backs, not just now, but after they graduate, when they're old, _forever_. I mean, I heard Noah and Ichigo arguing last week about who got to be 'best man' at Luke's wedding. Luke's wedding! Girls talk about weddings, but not when the guy in question isn't even going out with anyone!"

"They are a dedicated bunch," Noriko agreed, "though I'd be willing to bet Noah and Ichigo were teasing Luke, more than anything else."

"Oh, they were laughing," Mercedes agreed, "but they were serious, too. I don't remember how the conversation got around to the topic, I was working on my Arabic homework, but they were serious. I think they decided on Mariachi, except he apparently decided a ways back that he's covering music for _all _their weddings, so he can't, and they decided on Zafira-sensei. No idea if _he _knows about it. But that's not the point. That whole crew is going to stick together _forever_, and I want in on it. Yeah, I know, I'll never be as 'in' as the current team, but still, it's my sort of group, they're my sort of people, and the best way to getting in on it is with Yussef's tutoring. Which he won't give me anymore, because everyone'll be on his case about 'dating Mercedes'."

"He isn't that shallow," Noriko countered. "He'll grumble and complain, probably whine a little, but he'll still tutor you. I also doubt you'll get talked about as much as you fear. We aren't mean, Mercedes, we just like to rib each other a little. Yussef's boys will watch out for you as well, if only to protect him."

"Maybe," Mercedes returned to grumbling, "That was still way below the belt."

Noriko quirked an eyebrow at her, "Or perhaps too personal?" Mercedes glared at her, so she held up a calming hand, "No joke, Mercedes, just an honest question. Think about it."

"Speaking of honest questions," Allina said, bouncing up to stick her head over the seat, "You've always laughed at any suggestion Laura's interested in _anyone_, but she's gotta be making eyes at someone. You know who she's after?"

Noriko frowned at Allina, "We were having a private conversation, Allina. Hence the whispers, the leaning together, the lack of talking to anyone else."

"Yeah, but you've gotta be done by now, and I'm curious."

"So am I," Mercedes commented with a grin, "ammunition is always useful."

Noriko transferred the glare to her, "Do not go after Laura in the same way you have just been objecting to. You will find yourself in as much trouble as she is in now, without the sympathy you currently enjoy. As for your question, Allina, Laura is 'after' magic."

Allina nodded at that, "So, Takashi-san?"

Noriko shook her head, "Do pay attention, Allina. She is interested in magic, nothing else."

"She's interested in someone," Natalia countered from across the aisle, "though I doubt she realizes it."

Allina leaned towards her, "Who? Come on, Natalia, you've gotta share!"

Natalia shrugged, "Her brother, obviously. The only person she is guaranteed to ramble on about, the one she always holds up as 'the perfect guy', the one person she'll run to the phone to talk to. She has a crush on her brother, though I doubt she is aware of it."

"No, Natalia, you are wrong. You could just as easily use those same arguments to say she is interested in Signum-sensei," Noriko countered. "Too be honest, I'm ashamed to hear rumors like that from you, of all people. Laura does not have a crush on her brother, but he was the largest presence in her life until she came here. He is one of the defining personalities in her life," Noriko paused, giving Natalia a sad look, "just as Sasha is in yours."

Natalia twitched violently, eye wide, then glared. "Don't you dare..."

"Relax," Noriko ordered, "no insult intended or made. But just as you do not have a 'crush' on your brother, Laura does not have one on hers."

"Good ammunition, though," Mercedes murmured, "maybe for later."

Noriko gave an exasperated sigh, "Mercedes, what did I just tell you?"

Any response was interrupted by Mercedes sudden glare, followed by Laura saying, "Oi, Riko-chan, I've got a seat a ways back, come on. Mercedes, Hayate-sensei wants to talk to you."

The Italian looked quite affronted at that, "About what?"

"About _us_, obviously," Laura replied with a roll of her eyes. "You coming, Riko-chan?"

"In a moment," Noriko replied, waving Laura further back. Laura nodded and started towards the back, so Noriko added, "I'll take the window seat, Laura, thank you."

Laura stopped to glare, "Dammit, Riko-chan, I wanted the window seat! There's no view from the aisle seats!"

"Too bad," Noriko countered, "now shoo." Laura stomped her way further back, and Noriko could not resist smiling at her antics. Then she turned back to Mercedes, "Do think about what I said, Mercedes, and how you feel. Better to clear such things up with yourself, before you start trying to clear them up with anyone else. And do not try to use Natalia's rumor against Laura. At the moment, you have everyone's sympathies. Return the favor, and you will find yourself in an unbearable situation."

00000

When Mercedes went to talk to Hayate, Allina stopped her with a touch on her arm. "Take Noriko's advice. Don't go after Laura for who she's interested in. Whether she knows who it is she's interested in or not, 'kay? I shouldn't've asked, but, you know, curiosity and boredom."

Mercedes looked confused, then looked back at Laura chattering on, and shrugged. "Don't worry, I've got other plans for her. Why?"

"Just don't," Allina repeated, before dropping back into her own seat. She blinked at her companion for a second, then frowned, "Did you even notice any of that?"

Niranjana looked up from her PDA, "Notice what? I'm sorry, Allina-chan, I was talking with Ekavir about one of the proofs Signum-sensei gave him to do. What did I miss?"

"Gah, you're hopeless," Allina muttered. "It was just the fate of everyone's favorite chaos-magnet."

Niranjana blinked for a moment, then shook her head, "Laura is not a magnet for chaos, she is a generator of it. Look at this, do you remember it from last year? I think I remember the steps, but want to be sure before I tell Ekavir."

Allina gave up trying to get Niranjana off topic, and dutifully ignored the bubble of exasperation, leaning over to contemplate the problem on the PDA.

00000

Staring up at the heavy wooden arch, meter-thick red columns flanked by stone lions, Teri Maunders had to be impressed. She had seen older sites, but this place was not only ancient, but still alive, still in use, still very much a part of the culture that built it. It did not match Tokyo Tower for sheer overwhelming scale, but was the best sight she had seen in Kyoto on this trip.

"It's better inside," Saeko chuckled.

Teri smiled back at her, "Let me enjoy the moment. It's not every day I get to walk into a pagan temple with a native escort. I almost feel like Indiana Jones."

"Pagan?! How rude!" Saeko adopted a hurt expression, but was patently struggling not to smile. "Besides, you'd make a better Laura Croft, like all you overbuilt American women."

Teri chuckled, and started to reply and head inside, but was distracted by a bus pulling in to the parking lot. Quirking an eyebrow, she asked, "Should we come back? Looks like a big tour group, wouldn't want to get lost in the crowd."

Saeko looked over, then shook her head. "Oh, no, groups like that are never a problem. Some of the shrine maidens will keep them in line, we probably won't even notice them. Now come on, I need to pay my respects."

Teri followed her in with another chuckle, and shook her head. Saeko was a fellow sergeant, part of the Japanese side of the planning and liaison team Teri had been reassigned to. On duty, she was painfully formal and all business, to the point of being frightening. Off duty, though, she was friendly and helpful, and had shown Teri around Tokyo just after the move. The first couple weeks, she had shown Teri around Tokyo, and most recently she had insisted that Teri come with her on a weekend pass, to see the sights in Kyoto. Teri was still trying to determine if Saeko had been 'assigned' as her escort, or was just that lonely.

They were barely through the entrance way when Teri looked back, and grunted in shock. Standing in the gate talking to one of the shrine maidens was a tall woman with long lavender hair drawn back in a pony tail. "Signum," Teri muttered, "Ohhh, shit am I in trouble now."

That drew Saeko's attention, "Teri-san?" She looked at Teri, then in the direction Teri was looking, and gasped a little herself, though Saeko sounded happy, rather than terrified. "Oh, my, is that who I think it is? Come on, let's see if we can get a little closer. I wonder if Yagami-sama came with her?"

"Saeko, wait a second," Teri said. "Is there a back way out of here? It would be better for all of us if I was not here while they are." Saeko looked confused for a second, so Teri explained, "I'm a Circle journeywoman. They know me, and they will not be happy to see me here. Not if this is what I think is happening."

Saeko looked absolutely shocked for a minute, then visibly gathered herself together. "There is no 'back way'. To keep the shrine safe, access is by the main gate only."

"I was afraid of that," Teri sighed, then straightened her shoulders. "Come on, if I can't get away without them noticing, I better go make sure they don't think I'm spying on them." She squared her shoulders, and began marching for the gate.

Sure enough, as she approached the gate, she could see a crowd of children, about half of whom she recognized, and almost all of Hayate's mages, including the woman herself. _Stay cool, Maunders,_ she reminded herself, _you're off duty, you're on vacation, just seeing the sights at the invitation of a local friend. Nothing for them to get violent about._ Given the unpredictability of heretics, though, that was scant comfort.

Signum noticed her approaching before she was close enough to speak, and the woman's face froze instantly into a flat glare. "Journeywoman Maunders," Signum said slowly in English, "Why do I find myself only mildly surprised to find you here today?"

Teri's natural sarcasm asserted itself, "Because you're justifiably paranoid, and a lunatic heretic. Not all coincidences are suspicious, though, Signum. Allow me to introduce one of my co-workers, Sumishiro Saeko, Japanese Air Self Defense Force. She's been showing me around since I was assigned to Tokyo, talked me into a day trip to Kyoto."

Saeko bowed politely, saying in accented English, "It is an honor to meet you, Miss Signum." It might have been more effective as 'polite distance' had she not been nearly quivering with excitement.

Signum's face did not change, nor did she look away from Maunders while addressing Saeko, "You invited her here?"

"I come to Kiyomizu-dera the last weekend in October every year," Saeko answered. "I grew up in Kyoto, it is a family tradition. Teri has been gracious enough to accept my company in visiting my home town."

Signum stared for another few seconds, then relaxed very slightly. "Very well, Maunders. Thank you for informing us of your presence, we appreciate the honesty."

"Better that than the alternative," Teri answered with a shrug. "We'll be on our way."

"No need," Signum replied, "Mistress would never forgive me for preventing Miss Sumishiro from fulfilling a family tradition. Please refrain from interfering with our students, however. The second years will probably remember who you work for, and we would prefer to avoid any incidents."

"We'll stay out of the way," Teri promised. "Saeko, come on."

Saeko followed her away, glancing back frequently. "I can't believe you know them! Even if it isn't on friendly terms... did you know they are teaching one of the Emperor's granddaughters? Is Yagami-sama really as serene as they say?"

As Saeko rambled on, Teri shook her head ruefully. _Figures,_ she thought. _The most dangerous people on the planet, and the locals think they're the greatest thing since sliced bread. She sounds like a fan of some pop-star._ Then she realized what had just happened, and mentally slapped herself. _Hughes'll want a contact report,_ she reminded herself, _and he'll want to know what the local opinion of her is._ It made her a little uncomfortable, but she had to ask, "You sound like a fan, Saeko, do you really like them that much?"

Saeko gave her an incredulous look, "How can you not? They're so dramatic, so skilled, so strong. Look at how well their students did after just one year. I've heard that all their classes are college level, despite the students being junior high age!"

Once she got going, it was easy enough to keep Saeko on subject. A lot of what she said was hearsay, but that was irrelevant. What mattered was her tone, her attitude, and there was nothing but respect and admiration there. Saeko actually knew very little about Hayate and her school, but she was obviously proud of them. Surreptitiously watching the reactions of the shrine's other visitors to the teachers and students, Teri realized that attitude, that respect, was not an aberration. _Japan is Hayate's,_ she realized, _more than we thought, Japan is hers. This is going to be a problem._

00000

Kiyomizu-dera was interesting, as was the palace before it. But rather than being impressed, Chen-chi was finding herself rethinking a previously dismissed idea. Being in a Japanese city was waking a lot of Chen-chi's old instincts from Taipei. Not just the gambling that was so much fun, but seeing if she could expand from being a rookie bookie, to an actual fixer like the twins had suspected she was. Just looking out the window of the bus, she had been able to see potential, things her classmates would want that, while available on campus, were not easy to get. They were hardly in prison, but there was a world of difference between ordering something on line and having it shipped, and just asking for it. Then there was the simple fact that bigger packages were cheaper, and Chen-chi began to see all sorts of possibilities.

By Saturday morning, she had planned out the basics. Nothing nefarious, just a 'middle-man' position. She would collect orders from all and sundry, order it all from one or two places, preferably in Kyoto, and have the bulk shipment run up to the school. It would take some finagling, but she thought it would work, especially if she could find a couple shops that would give her a deal for repeat business.

She was talking it over with Jun and Kaemon during the drive to the stadium, trying to work out details based on Jun's skepticism and Kaemon's 'local knowledge'. When they reached the box the team owners had made available for them, though, all thought of business vanished. Standing at the window, looking out over the crowd of humanity, finally impressed upon her just what sort of company she had fallen into.

The owner of the Hanshin Tigers, the most popular baseball team in Kyoto, had requested that, for the opening game of their five-game series against their traditional rivals, the Tokyo Giants, a member of the Royal Family throw out the first pitch. Noriko had been selected by the protocol specialists, given her current popularity paired with her lack of availability to the media. As a bonus, the students had been invited to watch the game from the Family's box.

Looking out from that exalted position, over throngs of people finding their own seats, Chen-chi finally realized that, far from being the 'normal folks' they had been acting like, her teachers and classmates were from the sort of rarefied heights she aspired to in her more imaginative moments. It was humbling, in a way, but also grating in an odd way, and a little confusing. She could begin to understand why Kaemon was always uncomfortable with Noriko.

"Man, this is ridiculous," Jun complained, leaning on the rail next to her. "This box must cost a fortune."

"Getting your communist panties in a bunch, China-boy?"

Jun grimaced at her, "Still an uncivilized rebel, I see. Just strikes me as wrong, is all. I can see being able to afford a box like this, but it was _given _to Noriko's grandfather when the stadium was built, lifetime, free of charge."

"Respect, tradition, reverence." Chen-chi waved at the crowd, "every one of them, all of them, _believe _in the Imperial Family, Jun. Different countries, different rules, different beliefs. Come on, Taiwan and China come from the same roots, but look how different our countries are. There's almost as much bad blood between us as between as us and Japan, and more recent. Japan's got their ways, and they're comfortable with them. Worked well enough, too."

"Tche, hardly. They've gone through more changes of government and society in the last hundred years than any other real country with the same age, due to their own screw ups more often than not." Jun shook his head, "Besides, you're going a heck of a lot further than I was. I've got no problem with Japan, other than their attitude. It's the ridiculous... what's the word... ostentatious display. I mean, come on, they've got palaces all over the place, do they really have to be _given_ a box at the stadium?"

"Respect and reverence again," Chen-chi said. "I bet they could pay for this, but the owners gave it to them out of respect. See?"

"What've they done to be worthy of it?"

Chen-chi caught Vita's approach before Jun did, and managed to avoid jumping when she said, "How about providing Japan the continuity and authority to accept the ridiculously rapid changes you were just complaining about?" The red-head pushed between them to lean on the rail. "Down there you've got four, maybe five generations. That's over a hundred years of living memory. They've gone from a mostly agrarian, essentially feudal society to a high-tech information-age democracy in that time. From muscle power to nuclear power. From abacus to computer. All in the lifetimes of some of the people in this crowd. Every nation, every people, relies on some sense of connection to the past, of inheritance. Usually, that's a combination of religion and monuments. Here in Japan, it's the Imperial Family and the Shinto religion that provide that continuity, a living connection with their own past, a deeper connection than most nations. That's one of the reasons monarchies last so long, not because they're more efficient, but because they provide people with a sense of stability in time of change. See what I'm saying?"

Chen-chi shrugged, that had been her point all along. Jun was nodding though, "Yeah, I get it. Just by being who they are..." He trailed off with a shrug, "still don't like it. People screw up too easily to be worth that."

"They're the living symbol of Japan. It's not easy, not all parties and grand treatment. Think about what Noriko's doing right now." Vita gestured, and they saw Noriko walking out to the mound, accompanied by Hidan and Hayate. "Yeah, it's cool to throw out the first pitch of a game, to have all those people hanging on your every move. But as cool as it is, Noriko has to live up to their expectations. Over in America, whoever 'throws the first pitch', tends to lob it underhand, a nice gentle sort-of pitch, all they have to do is get it to the catcher. Here, though... if she doesn't give a credible throw, she'll embarrass herself and her family. Every time she appears someplace even remotely public, she has to be aware of the fact that everyone is watching her. Her entire family has to deal with that, all the time. This box isn't 'gratuitous', it's a recognition of the burdens they bear, and an attempt to alleviate it, to express the stadium and team owners' appreciation of their efforts. Understand?"

Chen-chi could not help nodding, trying to imaging what that sort of constant demanding attention would be like. She could only shudder in distaste. _Give me comfortably rich anonymity, and I'll be happy,_ she decided.

Jun, however, turned the lecture around, "so that's why she insists on ignoring it around the school, right? It's not really public, so she can relax, right?"

Vita nodded, "Yes and no. Noriko's fairly calm about all this. If you look close, you can tell she's smiling down there, and I don't think it's just her being formal. But really relaxed... yeah, that's at the school, and at the more secure palaces."

"Nah, Riko-chan loves stuff like this," Laura said, thudding into the rail next to Chen-chi. "Grew up with it and all. She likes the school, sure, but this stuff is fun to her." A roar from the crowd distracted her, and Chen-chi looked down in time to see the catcher rocking back on his heels. "Oh, nice," Laura caroled, "she juiced it with magic! I'm so going to teaser her for that for weeks."

"Which makes me wonder why she puts up with you," Vita commented. "Why she trusts you not to do what you did to Mercedes I'll never understand."

"Almost did," Laura admitted with a smirk. "Last year, a cruder version of Mollybreaker was the next step if I hadn't gotten her hair." Her face shifted to a thoughtful expression, "she might've gotten annoyed with me for that one, though."

Chen-chi could think of any number of things to say to that, but settled for just fading out from between her 'elders' as they took to arguing about Laura's pranks. She glanced at Jin, and jerked her head towards the door. When he nodded, the two of them slipped away, and she shivered all over. "Man, I do _not _know how she manages to come out of nowhere like that!"

"Years of practice scaring the crap out of people," Jin said, "and just as many years avoiding their just wrath. _I _don't know how she's survived this long without someone trying to kill her for all her games."

"Luck, skill, the fact that anyone who isn't her current target finds her funny," Chen-chi shrugged, "the usual reasons. Look, I'm thinking of skipping out of here for a bit, get some free time without all the teachers staring at us. Want to come?"

00000

Natalia watched Chen-chi, Jun and Mercedes slip out the door into the hall beyond with a shake of her head. From their furtive looks and 'stealthy' maneuvers, it was apparent they thought themselves unobserved, but it was also apparent they had no idea what they were doing. A little mental twist put her in touch with Vita, who was technically in charge up here until Hayate got back._ 'Sensei, did you see our trio of escapees?'_

Vita looked away from arguing with Laura to smirk at her, _'Yup. First they skip out on my lessons, then skip out on the whole class. I'm shocked, of course, disappointed and hurt. Want to go get them for me? Take Marcel with you, since he's whining at me about them as well.'_

_'I can handle it myself, sensei,'_ Natalia objected. Part of the reason she offered was to get out of the box herself, away from the crowd. It was not due to her screwed up eye, the eye-patch – now black and marked with an Al Hazred symbol for spiritually protective wards – helped immensely on that score. But she had grown unused to the pressure of people around her, the constant noise and attention, and wanted a break from that. Privacy would be hard to come by out in the halls, but anonymity would provide solitude.

_'Take Marcel, and stick with him. Be pretty silly if I send you out to retrieve some strays, only to have you 'stray' yourself. No great rush, but don't take too long.'_

Natalia rolled her eyes, but nodded and did not object when Marcel joined held the door for her. The two of them stepped out into the hall, then glanced at the suited figure standing across from the door. He barely moved from his stiff position, hands clasped in front of him, but his head rocked slightly to one side, indicating the direction the kids had gone.

Natalia returned the nod, then started out down the hall, strolling more than walking. Up here in the private section there were very few people, especially given the extra security the class had brought with them. But the direction Chen-chi and her tag-alongs had gone was towards the public areas, which was not much of a surprise. Soon Natalia and Marcel were confronted with a substantial crowd of people to wend their way through.

"I'm surprised you volunteered for this," Marcel commented as they wended their way through the crowd, following the tracers Hayate had placed on each of the students. The distinctive 'feel' of the three in question was subtle, fading into the crowd, but lasting long enough to keep them headed in the right direction.

"Right idea, wrong execution," Natalia replied. I agree with these three, getting out of that box was a good idea. Too many people in too small a space. But they should have asked."

"A little crowded, I agree."

"Worse for me." He frowned, but she smiled back at him, "Library girl, remember? I like peace, quiet, and nobody around to bother me. I'd be perfectly happy to spend the rest of my life in a library, if it wasn't for the total lack of anything resembling a paycheck."

"They aren't that badly off," Marcel chuckled, "and look at Takamichi-san. Yuuno, I should say. He's just a librarian... technically."

Natalia grimaced at the memory of the mousy man. "True, but he's... worse than Hayate-sensei, about what I did last year. She's fine to just let it lie and watch me, but he wants to poke and prod and question and test. Every time I'm in the same room with him I feel like I'm sitting an exam or something, like he's studying some intriguing specimen."

"You have to admit, even just your mastery of the language makes you a rarity. Being a bookworm, of course he's more interested in that than usual. Your eye just makes you more interesting still."

She grimaced again, but changed the subject, "You hitting on me, Marcel? 'Cause you've got a real poor way of going about it, and I think Yussef'd probably be pissed if he thought I was trying to steal you away from him." Marcel actually paused at that, just a moment, before resuming walking, and she frowned, "What? I was joking, Marcel."

"Far too many jokes on that subject recently," he answered. "You caught me off guard with it. And no, Natalia, I was not attempting to flirt. Comfort, support, yes. Flirt, no. Speaking of not flirting, though, I see our wayward kohai."

Natalia followed his gesture, and sure enough, the wandering trio was standing up against a wall – surrounded, by a group of teenage boys who looked more interested in Mercedes than in baseball. Natalia frowned, then swore softly in Russian. "What is it about trouble that it always lands on _us_?"

"Come again?"

Natalia gave Marcel a dirty look, "You spend too much time with Yussef, Marcel. You've picked up that silly pseudo-chivalry of his. Look at how those three are standing. They're not 'chatting', their trying to watch each other's backs against an enemy. I'd bet my eye those boys aren't taking 'no' for an answer."

"I gathered that, but it's hardly 'trouble', yet, just an annoyance. Teenagers will be teenagers after all."

"That's us you're talking about, remember? Well, time for a little acting practice, I guess." It was something she had worked on over the summer, and practiced a little with Ichigo, originally to deal with strangers who recognized her from the post-February news, though it had helped with Yuuno as well. She had yet to try it on one of her teachers, and was fairly certain any such attempt would end badly, but teenage punks were a far cry from any of her teachers. Settling her face into a faint smirk, she reached up and carefully removed her eye-patch, ruffling her hair a little to make it wild. She shifted her stance, her shoulders, and used just a little magic to deepen her voice and give it a bit of an echo. "Let us enlighten these foul-minded young snots as to the error of their ways," she purred, gliding forward. Mentally, she chuckled as she imagined the boys' reactions, _Yes, let's have some fun with Precia, shall we?_

00000

For Marcel, watching Natalia's transformation was one of the single most disturbing things he had ever seen, Takashi included. It was not so much the degree of change – there was no physical change – nor even the 'new persona'. Takashi's general presence was, in absolute terms, more discomfiting, but everyone expected that, was used to it. In Natalia's case, however, it was the radical alteration of her entire being, and the ease with which she accomplished it.

Natalia was, to him, a quiet bookworm with a bit of a temper. She was not as shy as Cidela, nor as studious as Niranjana, but she was definitely one of the more 'cerebral' students. A little odd, with some definite emotional issues, certainly. But she was far from dangerous.

Yet with a few alterations of her stance and face, the removal of her eye-patch, and a shift of vocal tone, she suddenly became a completely different person. He was hesitant to call her walk 'sultry', her attitude was far too disturbing for that, but that was the closest word that fit. Then there was the smirk, the narrow-eyed stare, her disheveled hair, and the glowing tattoo below her eye, all of which combined to give her a definite psychotic appearance. The tone of her voice, low and shifting, with a suddenly formal and archaic structure, woke thoughts of mythical terrors he normally scorned. He had to remind himself as he followed in her wake that this was an act, a mask she put on, but part of him thought it just as likely the 'bookworm' was the act.

Natalia glided through the crowd, ignoring those around her completely as they made way. Marcel prayed silently that the people did not notice why they were clearing Natalia's path, or at least did not question it, hoping to avoid having to explain a riot to Hayate. Natalia's entire attention was focused on the boys around their classmates, and she slid right up to the 'leader', ignoring the three she had to slip passed completely as she reached up to the leader's shoulder to turn him about.

"You would not be discomfiting my kohai, would you, young lad? I comprehend the lure of the exotic, but if you are disturbing my kohai, it becomes my responsibility to intervene on their behalf. Would you not agree?"

Leader tried to sneer at her, but she was his height, and something of her attitude made itself clear even to him, so the expression was weak, for the brief moment it lasted. "What the hell? Get away from me, gaijin, I'm busy with someone else."

Marcel stopped outside the circle, and when two of the boys Natalia had bypassed went to pull her back, cleared his throat. "Boys, you really want to rethink that." Hands in his pockets, Marcel was aware he made a less than intimidating sight, but confidence – which he had in spades, thanks to Yussef's training – showed through, and the toughs hesitated. "Better to walk away now, and save yourselves the shame of being thrown out of the stadium by my classmate here."

One of the two managed a confused, "By your classmate?"

"Oh, Marcel, I would not eject them from the premises," Natalia protested, hand trailing distractedly over Leader's chest. Then she smirked, just one half her mouth, revealing that she was one of those people with naturally obvious canines, "Until they failed to entertain me, at least. After all, I have so few opportunities to try my magics on unsuspecting mundanes."

The boys' eyes locked on her, and confusion faded to fear. Girl or not, none of them wanted to tangle with someone so patently insane. Slowly they started backing away, hands going wide. Leader was the last to go, and the most cautious about it. Natalia did not stop her wandering fingers until he was out of arm's reach, at which point he held up his hands, telling Marcel, "Hey, sorry, misunderstanding. We'll... just be on our way."

Marcel watched them go, long enough to be sure they would not try some sort of double-back, then turned his attention to the wandering trio. Chen-chi and Jun both looked relieved and annoyed, but Mercedes looked just plain annoyed. "Damn it," the Italian girl muttered, staring after the retreating forms, "Why can't I seem to do anything anymore without it blowing up in my face?"

"Because you're here," Marcel told here.

"And you insist upon such foolish behaviors as antagonizing Laura, and ignoring our teachers' instructions," Natalia added, turning her smirk on Mercedes.

When Mercedes flinched back from Natalia, Marcel stopped the Russian with a hand on her shoulder, "That's enough, Natalia. We've got them, now we just need to get them back."

"Oh, come on," Chen-chi protested, "it's stifling in there! Let's just walk around a little longer. No one's going to bother us now. Wouldn't have before, if Mercy hadn't smiled at that guy."

"I didn't smile at him! I was trying not to laugh at the couple snogging behind him!"

"Regardless," Natalia interrupted, voice fading back to normal, "Being out here without the teachers is dangerous. That's how the Circles almost got Laura last time we were in this city. Come along, back to the box."

The trio grumbled, but gave up protesting and began sulking their way back to the others. Marcel hung back, thinking more than watching. Natalia's transformation, the ease with which she had taken on such a disturbing appearance and aura, and the ease with which she shed it, was worrisome. She claimed it was 'acting', but she had never demonstrated any such talent before, and the thoroughness of the transformation was too complete, in his opinion. She might simply be that good a natural actress, but what were the odds of that? He knew he was going to have to discuss this with Yussef, probably with Shamal as well, but first, he decided to try a little direct action. _'Natalia? About your... acting.'_

She glanced back at him and grinned slightly. _'Liked it, did you? Did it work? Freak you out?'_

_'I did not 'like it', mostly because yes, it did freak me out.'_ He shook his head. _'Where did that come from?'_

_'I had my own issues with media attention,'_ She said, _'as well as family and government types looking for more information than I was willing to give, random strangers on the street who recognized me from TV. Cooked up that act as a counter, a way to get rid of annoying people. Works pretty well, too.'_

_'You just created that out of whole cloth?'_ He could see why she did that, and maybe a few examples in movies and the like, but that act was too extreme to be entirely a product of popular culture.

_'No, I had an inspiration,'_ Natalia said, then looked around a little guiltily. _'I, ah, did some research, on the woman who wrote that grimoire I got a look at last year. She was a real psycho, but that's what was so useful, you know? So I cooked up the act based on her. Ichigo's been helping me refine it, since classes started again.'_

_'Sounds reasonable,'_ he agreed slowly, _'just, please don't use it around me again? I'm liable to take a swing at you.'_

_'I won't use it on you. I'm usually looking for you, not trying to get rid of you, after all. You want to catch Chen-chi for me, she's about to try going right past the door.'_

"Chen-chi," Marcel called out, "I'd take that door, if I were you. Yussef's liable to think you need work on your navigational abilities. I can see a lot of mazes in your future, twisting corridors with no exits." _Note to self,_ he thought, _talk to Yussef about setting one of those up for an exercise, see how the kids handle being trapped._

Chen-chi glared at him, but took the appropriate door, and Marcel held it while ushering the others inside. Once there, he sent out a mental query to Shamal, _'Sensei, I think we need to talk about Natalia.'_

00000

Author's Note: Laura's prank on Mercedes at the start of the chapter was beyond the pale and unusually vicious, and I did that deliberately. The prank and reactions to it are part of both Laura's and Mercedes' character development, not just me being dirty-minded. For instance, the most objectionable part of that prank is one version of what I originally thought up for Laura to use on Noriko in Academy Blues, until the hair-color prank occurred to me. See Side Story 12 for the other version.

As for why this chapter was so long in coming, I'm afraid that, abnormally, I had issues with each and every scene. Usually when I get stumped, it's one scene, but this time I had trouble on all of them but the last pair. I had to create those two (the Natalia/Marcel scenes) out of whole cloth in order to get out of the loop. Also, I got distracted by life – family issues and a so-called 'vacation'. If you ever get a chance to travel... don't. Where ever you're going may be indescribably fun, but it's not worth sitting in on a taxi-way for five hours in a window seat in coach. The week itself was fine, too and from were hellish. On the up side, I've done more work on the outline, expanding it and detailing the next few chapters.

00000

General Reply: Thank you all for your responses on the device-activation question, about doing each device separately or doing them in groups. You all made some good points about repetition, giving the other students screen time, and variety of the devices, thank you. At present, I think I'll go the group route. The Myrmidons will go as one, Allina and Niranjana as another, and the twins of course. I'm still thinking about the rest of the students, but Cidela, at least, will get her own scene.

pfeil: Thanks for the review & response.

Kell Shock: You are very right about how confusing that section was, my apologies. There was originally some more discussion in there that turned into boring repetition of Seed capabilities – now corrected by giving one of the paragraphs to Tai-yu. Studying Seed is problematical, which is one of the things I find most enjoyable about them. Laura's singing isn't a weapon, though, she's just really bad at singing:). Akira's been floating around all along, just not doing anything 'screen worthy'. As for the spy, it is logical that there is one, and that he/she/it is highly placed, but take a look at the Circles pre-Hayate. The Circles existed by a combination of secrecy and knowledge, where intelligence was far more valuable than force of arms, so both the Revenants and Moderns have a great deal of experience in both espionage and counter-espionage. There are spies for both sides all through both sides, and for Hughes, how can he tell who is a 'spy' for one of his loyal factions, or for the Revenants? Even better, how can he tell who is a spy for an enemy, and who is counter-intelligence for him, in an organization undergoing such radical change? You know, the more I think about Hughes' situation, the sorrier I feel for sticking him in it. Thanks for your review!

Morganni: Thanks for the PM. As for the device hacking, it's not so much that Allina is all that eager to control someone else's device, as devices are the most powerful and best defended 'computers' she's ever encountered – if she can hack one of those, she can hack _anything_. As for how – the 'canon' access route is through the maintenance monitoring links used in As after Raging Heart and Bardiche were damaged. Difficult to use, not designed for the purpose Allina is thinking of using them for, but present fairly generally. Also easy to defend, once the person being attacked recognizes the attempt. You're probably hating Laura for the above prank, and you're right, she has gotten more vicious. Part of that's a facet of age (teenagers are generally vicious, from inexperience as much as anything else, and Laura is prone to going over-board), her own sense of proportion (or lack there-of), and the simple fact that Mercedes gets under Laura's skin like Laura gets under Yussef's. No promises, but both of them should cool off after this. As for the devices, putting a cartridge system into a Midchildan device would provide a lot of advantages, but I can't really see Signum and Vita putting up with it - why go 'half-way' when you can build a 'real' device, after all? As for Hughes, he doesn't seem to want to fight Hayate, does he? It may be a question of buying himself time, or he may be forced to attack against his will. As I told another reviewer a while ago, he has a fiendishly complicated balancing act going on trying to hold the Moderns together, and one of the primary balancing forces he has to work with is the threat of Hayate's retribution. So long as the Moderns fear that retribution, it's a lever he has to hold his people together until something more stable comes along. Thanks for still reading!

TheWhiteMonk: Thanks for the review, and the advice.

stormturmoil: I'd question how much connection/control there is between the device and its user, but you're right, there is potential, if the device is hacked, to control the user. Probably less 'mind control' than 'puppet strings on their magic'. Basic capability to hack a device, however, does not imply they can access 'every device'. Remember how much trouble they had back-tracking the hacker in the first Side Story? Defending against Allina and Niranjana will be easier than them breaking in. Thanks for the review!

Advent000: Takashi is, indeed, working on something secret – I'm looking forward to the reveal for that. Thanks for the review!

Baughn: Glad you liked last chapter. I find I tend to fall into 'conversation mode' very easily, almost automatically, especially when no one is shooting. Had a lot of information to convey last chapter, though, and conversation is the easiest way to do that.

CrimsonDX: Thanks for your suggestion, it's the closest to how I'm going to proceed with activating the devices.

Taeniaea: Sorry it took so long, got stumped a couple times, and distracted by life.


	13. 12 Wolves on the Prowl

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-12 – Wolves on the Prowl-

Noriko paused halfway into her seat as Laura, on the other side of the table, jerked in surprise and whipped her PDA into her lap. The furtive look on Laura's face confirmed Noriko's suspicions, and she dropped into her chair with a thud. "Laura, we just got back, you're grounded until winter break, and you have to work with Mercedes two hours a week on countering illusions. Please don't try anything now, you'll just get in more trouble."

Laura grimaced at her, then fished out her PDA again, "You're such a stick in the mud, Riko-chan. I'm not going to try anything... my minions are! Besides, I'm not grounded, I'm just not allowed in the workrooms outside of class."

"Like I said, grounded."

"Ah, no, 'grounded' means restricted to dorm room, library common room, and classes. Trust me, I've been grounded around here often enough to know. Hayate-sensei just refused to let me in a workroom without supervision. And the pranks," Laura shrugged, "Hayate-sensei just gave me a bigger challenge is all."

Noriko choked at that, fearing for just a second that Laura was going to go even more overboard. "What?"

Laura grinned, obviously amused by her discomfort. "It's not what you're thinking, Riko-chan. Hayate-sensei didn't tell us to stop pranking each other, she just set an upper limit. Now I have to try to prank Mercedes, without pissing off Hayate-sensei. See? A challenge!"

"You're serious, aren't you?" Laura nodded eagerly, and Noriko shook her head. "Be careful, Laura, please? You're too good at magic to get expelled, but Hayate-sensei will do something like that, if you anger her enough."

"Yeah, I know. It's a challenge, not impossible. I'm thinking I'll mess with Mercedes' alarm, next. Set it to go off at weird hours, or something. Anyhow, this," she shook her PDA, "is not prank plans. It's just not something else I want to have to explain to Sensei."

"What are you hiding from her now?"

"Not hiding, just..." Laura hesitated, then looked around, verified no one else was close enough to overhear, and shrugged. "She's been asking me about the Wolkenritter again. Not asking if I want to join, but hinting at it, you know?"

Noriko nodded, filling a little thrill of excitement for her friend. She had helped Laura look into the Wolkenritter a little, and just the invitation to join the small elite order was an incredible honor. "You should seriously think about it," she said. "You would do very well with them, even before you graduate."

Laura grimaced, and shook her head. "Yeah, maybe, but... I don't like it. The Wolkenritter are _them_, you know? Hayate-sensei's family and Knights. They're the best, what we're all supposed to live up to. I haven't."

"Signum-sensei thinks you have," Noriko countered, "and so do Vita-sensei, Shamal-sensei, and Zafira-sensei, since all four of them had to agree to extend the offer."

"Yeah, but take a look at them. They've been together for centuries, Noriko." Laura waved one hand, "Okay, okay, they don't remember most of it. But they still have that connection, that long history together. I'd never be able to match that. Even if it wouldn't be wrong, pretending to be one of them."

Laura's obvious discomfort with the idea was a little disappointing, but Noriko was not really surprised. This was the most Laura had ever said on the subject at once, but she had used all of the arguments before. "So, what are you doing that's related to that? Trying to find a way out?"

"I found a way out, I'm just going to keep saying no. I already told Sensei I don't think I'll ever say yes, so hopefully she'll take the hint eventually."

"But?"

Laura's grin was far closer to normal this time, "but she'll back off if I come up with something else. Something that gives us both what she wants, me under some kind of control, but not intruding where I don't belong. Thing is, I think she'll shoot me down, unless I've got it all set before she finds out about it."

"I think you're being paranoid," Noriko said. "You would be perfectly welcome amongst the Wolkenritter, but if you don't want to, all right. However, I need to study, and would appreciate a little company while I do that."

Laura sighed, "As in, I need to stop playing, and help you keep your second place rating."

"I wouldn't object to first place." Both of them chuckled at that.

Contrary to her reputation, Noriko found studying with Laura to be no more difficult than studying on her own. Laura was quicker to talk, and not always on topic, but usually related. At the very least, her non-sequiturs provided memorable moments that made remembering the information in question easier. So for half an hour or so, the two of them worked in companionable quiet, occasionally trading comments or explanations.

That quiet was disturbed by the appearance of the twins. The materialized at the end of the table so abruptly, so silently, Noriko wondered for a moment if they had figured out Allison's Cloak of Shades, or if Laura had taught them. Then she got another surprise.

"Good afternoon," they said in unison, before one added, "Senpai."

Noriko and the other twin stared at the vocal one for a moment, before Laura laughed, "Ah, that's cute, Ruin-chan, but you don't need to be that stuffy. Laura's fine."

_That was __Rhys__,_ Noriko realized, then frowned. Laura had told her that Rhys was the twin that most disliked her, though Laura seemed mostly amused by that fact. To hear either twin use such a respectful term, especially that twin towards Laura, was shock. But on further thought, she supposed it could be a side-effect of the Seed attack. Both the twins had been a little odd since then, odd for them.

Saeryn stopped staring at Rhys, to ask, "Are you free, Sims-san? We have questions concerning our devices."

Laura blinked at them, "You two talk to Allina and Niranjana already?"

"Yes," the twins answered.

"They were unhelpful," Rhys added.

"Their designs remain separate," Saeryn said, "however communicative. They share the specific systems, but could not advise as to their applicability."

"How politely did you ask," Noriko asked, "or did you ask?"

The two frowned at her, almost glaring, "we asked, politely. We spoke with them for half an hour or more."

"You mind, Riko-chan?" Laura gave her a half-apologetic, half-pleading look, "I did promise to help them."

Noriko shook her head, "No, I don't mind. Would you like my assistance as well?"

"Sure," Laura said, interrupting the twins, "they'd love to have your help."

"Senpai," Rhy complained.

"Shut it," Laura interrupted with a grin, "Noriko may see what I'm missing. She's got all those crazy notes on Deva magic, which is all about deep bonds between mage and device. So drag up a seat, and let's see what you've got so far."

The twins continued to frown at Noriko for a few more moments, then shrugged and went to sit on either side of Laura. They patched their PDAs into hers, quite deliberately sharing the device design document with Laura and not Noriko, only to grimace as the first thing Laura did was send it to Noriko. Unsurprisingly, there was only one design, a fairly basic Velka pattern. It only took Noriko a few minutes to review the design, noting only one oddity. "I'm guessing," she said, interrupting the quiet debate across the table, "that you want your devices to connect to each other more completely than Allina and Niranajana plan theirs to connect, but at the same time, you do not want anyone else to be able to connect to the devices?"

"Yeah, they're tired of not being the Corsican Sisters," Laura said, "so they want their devices to be linked like that. Permanent, free-flowing communication and power."

"The Circles teach all their mages to work in concert as much as alone," Saeryn explained, "to accomplish that with devices would be prohibitively difficult without linking the devices."

"My sister and I are a team," Rhys added, "we will be the best team it is possible to be."

"You're going to be worse than that," Noriko said, shaking her head. "This is risky, girls. I know you two like to think you're the same person, but you're not, and your devices will be different. Two people cannot trade devices, not without wiping the old programming. What you're trying... risky, definitely risky. You'd probably be safer to build your basic devices, then work on combining your magics _outside _the devices." When the twins did not reply, Noriko glanced up to find Laura trying not to laugh, and the twins giving her the flat non-expression they adopted in place of more usual mulish intransigence. "What?"

"Hayate-sensei already went over that," Laura told her, "ripped them up one side and down the other. Right up until they demonstrated how they cast a spell together. Turns out, they _always _merge their magics in themselves. Which shouldn't be possible, according to Hayate-sensei."

"It is how we learned to do it," Saeryn said, "before our parents taught us. The way of the Circles is what you think. Our way is more efficient."

"That's what they said about rocket engines in the forties," Noriko said. "Doesn't mean they're safer." She knew the twins would not stop, they were too much like Laura for that. The question for her was, as with Laura, how to keep them from going too far too fast? "I'll help," she said after a minute, "but only with conditions."

Saeryn shook her head, "Thank you, Noriko-san, however we can manage well enough on our own."

Noriko quirked an eyebrow, "I'll admit Laura can get the devices working without my input. But get them communicating? On top of the Velka systems and programming? Laura knows the Velka systems backwards and forwards, but there are only three people on this campus who have any idea how to do what you're trying, and Niranjana and Allina aren't going to help you if you don't agree to my conditions. You're smart, so you can probably figure out how to do it... next year sometime. Whereas, with my help, you can probably manage it before year end. But you will agree to my conditions, if you want my help."

"Whoa, laying it on a little thick there, aren't you, Riko-chan?" Laura ruffled the twins' hair, "They're not that crazy, not like me."

"What are your conditions," Saeryn asked.

"Not that bad. First, you do not try co-casting any spells with your devices outside of precisely controlled workroom conditions. Not class, mind you, but independent tutoring sessions with one of the teachers. Understood?" The twins nodded, so she continued, "Second, you do not, under any circumstances, try to patch over Allina's and Niranjana's hacking protocols. They're building their devices on Midchildan programming, and none of us know either system well enough to monkey around with porting programs. Allina compared it to translating Linux programs to Windows – the output may look the same, but the background's radically different. Finally, you don't share this with anyone else. You two have some idea how to merge your magic, none of the rest of us do, but several of us are dumb enough to try it. Yes, Laura, I'm looking at you for a reason."

"We can agree to those," Saeryn said over Laura's laughter. "We intended to be cautious all along, Noriko-san."

Noriko highly doubted that, but took her victory and ran with it. "Well, in that case, let's look at the design, then, shall we? The hardware should not be too difficult, it will be the programming, both enabling the system and protecting it from attack or abuse."

00000

While Hayate had originally planned to have the entire device-construction project done as a class, two factors convinced her to break it up into two groups. The first was simply size – there was only one workroom large enough to contain the entire class's devices prior to activation, the main workroom which was also the best option for almost all of the classes. She was still occasionally shocked at the sheer number of students she already had, and had never planned for more than ten or so students in any particular class. The second factor was one she had not foreseen, but made the actual division easier – Yussef's Myrmidons. Given how well the boys worked together and how similar their devices were, it just made sense to stick them together and let them run with it.

So when they had their twice-a-week 'construction days', the class broke up into the two largest workrooms after the main. Yussef took his boys to 'their' room, while Lotte accompanied Noriko and the girls. She would move between the classes through the period, but usually spent more time with the girls and their more varied designs. For his part, Yussef was not looking forward to this second construction class, not after reviewing the tapes from the last one. A week back from Kyoto, and he was going to utterly ruin Ichigo's day. _At least we're still early in the process,_ he comforted himself, _this would be far worse later on._

Unlike when Yussef had built his own device, they were not getting the components all in one huge pile. Instead, the teachers were providing components 'as needed', just the basics to start with to get the processor core built. According to plan, as the devices came along, parts would be delivered to the workrooms for each day. That simplified organization and finding what part to attach next, and also kept the room from being too crowded right from the start. On their last – and first – construction day, they had separated to work individually, after a brief reminder from Lotte of the safety rules they were working under.

Today, however, Yussef stopped the boys just inside the door. "Gather around guys, before we get started, there's something that needs to be gone over again." They did not look worried, just confused, though Toushiro looked overly-resigned, probably expecting a repeat of the safety lecture. Instead, Yussef walked halfway across the room to one barely-begun device, looking far less impressive than the nest of cables and tools around it, and rested a hand on the core. "Ichigo, my apologies for picking on you, but you're the first one to make this mistake, so you get to play object lesson.

"I didn't catch it last time we were here, but did yesterday, looking over the tapes with Lotte-sensei. About a third of the way through the day, you stopped using the tools provided to bind, seal and charge the parts. The binds aren't such a big deal, they're no different from welding metal, according to Lotte-sensei. But the seals and charges are a whole other problem. The problem Noriko, Laura and I suffer from." Yussef paused a moment, looking over the boys. Most of them looked suitably worried, but Ichigo was actually looking angry. _Well, contrary, he isn't quite at angry, yet,_ Yussef decided.

For his part, Ichigo protested, "It's not that bad, Yussef. You three manage well enough."

"True, we do. On the other hand, the three of us are still working our butts off learning how to compensate. Admittedly, it's down to one session a week instead of the 'every-free-second' it was last year. But, if you'll all check your PDAs, you'll find you now have links to the video of our last session Monday afternoon. So now you'll all know why I'm so tired after one of those. You also all remember how badly injured Noriko was last year.

"The simple fact is, the three of us share a permanent vulnerability that we cannot truly compensate for. Anything that happens to our devices will be reflected in us. Judging from Noriko's injury, if the Circle mage had successfully destroyed Senbonzakura, he would have cooked her brain at the same time, literally. Arf-san would have brought a corpse out for burial, not an injured student for medical attention. We will always be that vulnerable, Ichigo. Shamal thinks we cannot even disassemble the devices without injuring ourselves, possibly permanently. Do you want that? Do you want the vulnerability, the massive workload, and the constant worry, all for a three to four percent boost in efficiency? If you do, too bad. None of us are willing to let you.

"So, now that you know why, here's the really bad news."

"I have to disassemble everything and start from scratch," Ichigo said with a grimace. "Dammit, man, that's gonna put me two days behind!"

Yussef gave him a semi-sympathetic grin and reached out to shake his shoulder. "I'm not trying to hammer you, Ichigo. You're not alone, for instance, just the worst offender of the lot. Marcel and Noah are both going to have to disassemble their devices. They weren't as flagrant about it as you, but they both included too much personal energy and attention last time." He let go of Ichigo and looked at the others. "I know I'm being a little heavy-handed, guys. I'll be honest, all Hayate-sensei insisted on was that the parts be completely de-charged, not disassembled. But I can't drive home hard enough how dangerous our devices are for us, so all three of you are stripping your devices back down to basic unpowered components. I'm not letting my men inflict the same vulnerability on themselves that I suffer from. Understood?"

A chorus of assents came back, so he nodded, "Come on, Ichigo, I'll give you hand getting this thing stripped down again. Marcel, Noah, you two get started taking yours apart, I'll be over once Ichigo's done. Everyone else," he grinned and jerked his head at another table, "quit loafing and get to work."

He and Ichigo managed to get the nascent device disassembled in about twenty minutes of the class's forty-five, shortly after Lotte slipped in from getting the girls started. Ichigo grumbled, generally whenever anyone else was in earshot, but did not seem too serious about it, mostly concerned with catching up. While talking to him, Yussef decided that, prior plans or not, he would offer Ichigo some after-hours help after dinner. They were not supposed to work on construction outside of class time, in case of precisely the sort of mistake he had brought up today, but exceptions could be made. He had originally planned to leave Ichigo to recover the lost time on his own, to drive the point home, but Ichigo was taking it well enough, Yussef decided to give him a break.

Noah was almost as calm about it when Yussef went to check on him, not happy, but not sulking or snapping either. Marcel, on the other hand, was actively pissed. He was calmer about it than Yussef was used to, about where he or his brothers normally were on a 'bad day'. But Yussef knew Marcel well enough by now to recognize that the Frenchman was livid, about where Yussef and his siblings started hitting things and yelling.

Yussef considered that for a minute, before stepping up to lend a hand, saying, "Marcel, I know it's embarrassing, and annoying, but trust me, this is better than the alternatives. I'm sorry I had to come down on you, but everyone else will learn the lesson better for having an example. It's not like I didn't make any mistakes. Even with Akira's help halfway through, I still wound up having to go back and redo a week or so worth of work."

Marcel's grumbling cut off when Yussef started speaking, and only blinked for a second. Then he frowned, "You think I'm mad at you?"

"Aren't you?"

"I'm mad at myself," Marcel snarled, resuming disassembly. "I know everything you went through last year, I know every step you took, every mistake you made, _everything_. And I still screwed up because I wasn't paying attention! I didn't even do it deliberately like Ichigo, I just wasn't paying attention!"

"Calmly, Marcel," Yussef said, feeling a little odd about that. It was usually Marcel's job to calm him down, not the other way around. "We all make mistakes. We're not perfect. Even Hayate-sensei makes mistakes, just look at what the three of us managed last year. All the senseis are still upset over our devices."

Marcel grimaced and shook his head, "Yeah, I know, man, it's just... it was a stupid mistake, and I'm seriously not used to making those. It's ridiculous!"

Before Yussef could reply to that, there was a massive snapping sound, followed by a surprised shout from Luke. The Australian stumbled back from his device, shaking one hand vigorously and staring at the smoking stack of components in distrustful surprise. Yussef shook his head, then grabbed Marcel's shoulder before he could move, letting Lotte respond to Luke first. "Relax, Marcel. We all make mistakes, and I guarantee someone else will make the exact same one you just did before we're through. Just make sure that 'someone' isn't you. Now come one, let's go see how much damage Luke did to himself."

00000

Noriko sent a sympathetic look to Yussef as he was dragged off by the boys, but he apparently missed it. She knew full well what he was about to do, and was just as glad none of the girls had made that mistake. _Yet,_ she reminded herself, _Allina will simply forget, and I think Juliet will try to slip something like that in. I'll have to check the recordings tonight, see how Yussef handles it._

In the privacy of her mind, she could honestly admit that she actually envied Yussef his Myrmidons. The boys were used to working together, used to following his directions, to listening to what he said. While Noriko was generally the 'leader' of the girls, that was mostly because she was the one student everyone went to for help. The girls had never been organized like Yussef's boys, and they still were not, militantly so in a couple of cases. Even with only one day's experience, the construction class left Noriko feeling like she was herding cats.

_Not such a bad analogy,_ she thought, watching Juliet and Allison crossing the workroom, not quite stalking. Those two had become much closer this year, not like Niranjana and Allina, but a deeper friendship. There was no sense of superior/inferior, or united purpose, just commonality of personality and interest, and watching the two of them reminded Noriko of a pair of hunting tigresses. Combined with Megan's feline forms, and the total independence of each of the girls, 'herding cats' was definitely and apt description.

"All right, ladies," Lotte said once the door was closed, "remember the safety lectures! Careful with the tools, don't use your own magic for anything, and don't charge any components until they're fully attached. Noriko, Laura and I have a few corrections for you, which we spotted while reviewing the tapes, and a few more the other teachers noticed while inspecting your work. We'll stop by and let you know how to fix them. Don't get snippy, or we'll make it worse!"

Noriko shook her head at Lotte's final sing-song warning, and went to talk with Niranjana. They were working separately, officially, but Allina kept 'lending a hand', so talking to Niranjana would draw the other girl. Which was another thing Noriko reminded herself to check up on – Allina was becoming positively clingy where Niranjana was concerned, except where Niranjana could see it. All while still vehemently insisting they were 'sisters' or 'just friends'. Niranjana, for some reason, was being rather coy about her opinion of their relationship, but Allina was patently having trouble. What had been amusing and cute last year was looking rather more serious this year, and not in a good way.

Still, this was hardly the place for such a conversation, so Noriko settled for shaking her head when Allina abandoned her own set-up to join her at Niranjana's work-bench. "You two have not made a mistake yet," Noriko told them softly, "probably because you keep back-checking each other. But we're all still uncomfortable with the communications systems, so I'd just like to go over your programming with you, make sure the base is solid."

"Certainly, Noriko," Niranjana said, "we are being careful. The communications arrays will be the last components we install."

"Come on, we're doing this so we can mess with other systems," Allina protested, "we know how to keep anyone else from messing with ours."

Noriko shook her head, "It's not just other people attempting to disrupt your device. The communications systems you two are including have never been used in a device before. They're portable arrays Hayate-sensei acquired specially for you two, normally part of the deep space teleport and communication relays the Bureau seeds in their territory. Something new like this, even without hostile intent… any number of things can go wrong. So," she smiled gently, "please indulge me?"

She was exaggerating Hayate-sensei's concerns about the components, but did not feel too guilty about that. The idea of them being able to access and even influence – let alone control – someone else's device was frightening enough, but Noriko had noticed almost immediately that they would be making their own devices more vulnerable to the same sort of inimical interference, and wanted to be as certain as possible that they were well protected.

Checking the already-assembled parts and programming did not take long, but did reassure Noriko. While Niranjana and Allina were not as far along as some of the others, their slower more cautious work would save them endless rebuilding and reprogramming, and Noriko was looking forward to the two of them finishing first in the entire class. Once her own concerns were reassured for the moment, Noriko let them get back to work and stepped back to consider where to go next.

Even after dividing into the two official classes, the girls had divided again, not out of any dislike, but simply due to interests. Noriko had Niranjana and Allina, Cid-chan, and technically Natalia. Laura had Allison, Juliet, and, surprisingly, Megan. The first two were there for her expertise with the Velka systems they were using, and Laura was using them to help her convert Paradox to the Velka runes and programming. Megan, for her part, claimed she had merely asked Laura a question while Noriko was busy, and, in her words, "never escaped the crazy-girl's clutches." Noriko was fairly certain Megan hoped Laura would help her figure out how to insure her device was as physically malleable as she was.

Natalia was worrisome, simply because Noriko had only the most basic notion what she was doing. Natalia had put together a basic programming and structure of her device together on the basis of the Al Hazred runes she could use, and that had resulted in some very strange twists to her device. It was still essentially Midchildan in structure, but the way the components were going together, and _especially_ the way its programming was coming together, were even stranger. Noriko did not think there was anything inimical in there, and Hayate-sensei and Aria-sensei were watching Natalia like hawks, but the feel of the device was just so strange it made Noriko uncomfortable. It also, unfortunately, limited how much help anyone could give Natalia in building her device.

Cidela was relatively easy, by comparison. Shamal's foundling was perfectly content to work quietly on her own building an essentially normal device, and had the not inconsiderable advantage of Shamal's advice, available to her at will. Still, during class itself, Noriko was easier than Shamal to reach, and she was frankly curious about Cidela's device. So once Niranjana and Allina were well under way, Noriko headed over to Cidela's work-bench.

Rafiq was curled about Cidela's torso and shoulders, and Noriko could not help chuckling as she reached out to gently rub his head. "You're getting huge, Rafiq. Are you going to be relatively as big in human form?"

"He's not that big," Cidela protested. "He's not even two meters!"

Rafiq just hissed lightly, mouth open ever so slightly in a reptilian grin, "Probably not, Noriko-san. Size is immaterial, though. Mistress is not so large, after all."

"True, look what a mistake the Circles made with that thinking last year," Noriko agreed, carefully not showing her amusement at Cidela's conflicted face. She patently wanted to defend her familiar from any possible slight, and at the same time was insulted and complimented by Rafiq's comment. Physically, Cidela had grown the least of all the students, still a small compact girl, and getting a little sensitive about it, but she was also one of the strongest in terms of raw magic. "How is your device coming?"

Cidela ducked her head a little, embarrassment winning as usual, "All right. I'm not moving as quickly as some of the others, but I want to be careful."

"Mistress is too cautious," Rafiq said, nudging Cidela's chin gently, "less to fear here than in Okaa-san's lessons."

"This is going to affect you, as well as me, Rafiq," Cidela said. While her hands were busy picking up tools and components again, she managed to return Rafiq's nudge with an odd motion of her head. "If I make a mistake with this, you will suffer, and I cannot allow that."

Rafiq hissed slightly, but Noriko spoke before he could. "Let her worry, Rafiq. She needs to worry at something, after all, and despite how slowly she's moving with her device, she'll probably be done quicker than most. She probably won't make any mistakes, after all."

"True," the snake agreed, then grinned at her again, "that is going to be an interesting day."

"Noriko?" Lotte's voice almost made her jump, but Noriko managed to convert that into simply turning around. "I'm going to go lend Yussef a hand. You girls are all moving along nicely, but he's got to have several unhappy boys over there by now."

Noriko nodded, "That's fine, Lotte-sensei. If we run into any trouble, I'll call."

"Good girl," Lotte said, then chuckled at her slight grimace. "I'll just be down the hall."

Noriko watched her go, then turned back to Cidela. "Would you mind if I took a look, Cid-chan? The regulators Shamal-sensei is having you use are interesting, and I'm wondering if I might be able to use them in Senbonzakura to mitigate the difficulties of my link."

"I do not think they will," Cidela said, but handed one waiting component to Noriko. Shamal was having her build several into the device at various points, to further assist with keeping her still wild healing gift under control. "They act as… governors… on my power, nothing more. They do not alter what I do, only how much power I can draw on to do it. From what Okaa-san said, your link is too deep, too thorough, for that to have an effect. The regulators would probably sever your link to Senbonzakura." Cidela frowned, "Which would be bad. Don't try that."

"But the principles may still be applicable," Noriko countered, ignoring the oft-repeated warning, instead studying the part in her hand. She was willing to look into almost anything, if it showed promise of attenuating or removing the deep link with her device. Much as she loved Senbonzakura, she never wanted to go through another injury like what she had suffered in February again. Just as important, she did not want Yussef or Laura to suffer the same fate. "Even if this won't work, maybe it will point me in the right direction. Thank you, Cid-chan."

00000

Arlain paused as the speaker in his ear crackled, "One-One, this is Three-One, status."

Dropping completely behind the knee-high brick wall, Arlain swore mentally, before triggering his throat mike, "Three-One, One-One. Twenty seconds to position."

"Roger that, be advised we have movement on the neighboring roof, north of target."

"Fuck," Arlain snarled, picturing the approach. His team was closing from the east, and the building to the north, while across a wide street, was higher than the entire approach. Anyone standing up there would be able to see them clearly, and if they were associated with the target or just 'good Samaritans', there went the element of surprise.

"No kidding," Thorngrave said back, sounding amused, "can you get around or bypass?"

Arlain thought it over for a minute, but saw no way around it. The buildings south and west of the target were all lower, one- and two-story structures. The target was four stories, their current route five, and the buildings across the way five to ten. Looking at the situation, he did not think they could get past the person across the street. "I'll send One-Three to handle the observer. Twenty minutes."

"Roger that. We'll be in position in fifteen."

Arlain let go the trigger for his mike, then looked back towards his team. He held up three fingers, then waved, and a moment later Jubal materialized next to him. "You heard?"

Jubal nodded, smirking slightly, "North of target, 'cross the street, up ten flights, eliminate watcher, then return. Here or IP?"

"Bounce across to the roof when One-Two and I go over," Arlian said. "We can't wait to long, so you've got fifteen minutes. Need rope?"

"On these buildings? Please, your grandmother could free-climb these things."

"My grandmother would never be caught dead in this city. She hates hot weather and thinks the Americas are still uncivilized wilderness. Get moving."

Jubal moved out fast, rising to a crouch and running forward to the western edge of their current building, rolling over the side the building into the alley. Just as he had claimed he could, the Frenchman free-climbed to the ground. Arlain gave him ten minutes, then rose back to his crouch and proceeded to the wall himself. A glance back showed Law right behind him, and the two of them nodded to each other. A carefully shaped spell turned their low jumps into long glides, enough to get them over the alley to the next building, and then they were down again.

They paused in the shadow of a roof-top air conditioner, both of them looking for the 'movement' that Thorngrave had reported. Neither of them saw anything, however, and Arlain was unwilling to wait. Seven minutes of careful crawling later, they were at the western edge, crouched down with only their eyes above the wall, watching and waiting. As reported, there were two guards on top of the roof, standing in opposing corners, patrolling opposite walls of the building.

"Take the far one," Arlain whispered, "but be ready to take mine. I'm going to try Gershaw's new toy."

Kevin Gershaw, the Dogs' heavy weapons expert on Team Three, was something of a tinkerer. After Shanghai, he had pulled a rabbit out of his hat, to replace the under-slung tazers teams One and Two used. Those were fairly standard tazers save for the housings, using packaged wire loads that could be switched out after each shot, but were still limited to the reach of the wires. Gershaw had gotten his hands on some sort of tazer engineered small enough to fit into – and be fired like – a shotgun shell. He had cut down a single-barrel shotgun, removed the stock, and fitted it with top-rails, creating a three-shot tazer launcher. Not as much range as a normal shotgun, but better than a normal tazer, and with the same flexibility.

Now, as Law shifted sideways to get a clear shot at the guard in the far corner of the front of the building, Arlain took rough aim at the man in the near corner at the rear. The range was short, not even fifteen meters, but visibility was poor, and the tazer-launcher was hardly an accurate weapon. Triggering his radio again, he announced, "Team One ready."

The response was immediate, "Launch."

"Roger that." Arlain did not quite rise completely, just enough to get his rifle over the lip of the wall. His target noticed something, probably the fast motion, and began to turn towards him, but Arlain was set first, and pulled the trigger. The shotgun blast was louder than normal, less energy expended in the barrel and less containment of that energy, but also less kick. He was on his feet a moment later, as his target vanished. A glance showed Law on his feet, already backing up.

The two of them backed up a couple meters, then took a running start and repeated their jump spell. This time their landing was accompanied by wards coming to life, but by then there were other problems for the building's occupants to worry about, and with the top-cover down, no one to stop Team Two from going in the back, or Team Three from going in the front. Blasts mere seconds apart announced the rest of the Dogs breaking in by way of old-school LAWs. Arlain and Law hit the roof, and a moment later Jubal came plummeting out of the sky in a far less controlled landing.

Zip-ties secured Arlain's prisoner, who was on hands and knees, but too surprised and disoriented to resist, as well as Law's target, who was non-responsive. Neither Dog took time to check for life-signs or try first aid, the longer they took here the more likely casualties would be higher. While he took care of that, Law laced a charge on the roof access door, and blew it while Arlain was coming over. They cleared the top landing, then Arlain tapped Law, "You, Jubal, me, go."

Their task for this mission was, in many ways, the simplest. The target building had only a single central staircase, right next to a single elevator shaft. They were to progress from roof to ground level, check each floor in turn, secure or eliminate any occupants, then hold the ground floor. Team Three was responsible for securing the ground floor against external interference, while Team Two got the unpleasant task of securing the basement levels, where the most resistance was expected.

At each floor, Law and Jubal fanned out, scouting the collection of offices and storerooms. There were no contacts on the fourth or third floors, but Jubal encountered three Revenants on the second floor, and promptly proved Arlain's concerns about him rather well founded. Jubal insisted they resisted, Arlain figured he did not do more than make one attempt to get a surrender.

The first floor was a different story. The elevator and stairs let out into the main lobby, where every piece of glass was shattered and the doors were twisted and scorched. A scorched spot was smoldering on one wall, off at an angle from the door, where the explosive jet had dissipated. Light warhead or not, the door had patently not been as reinforced as Thorngrave had feared. Gershaw's massive bulk was dug in behind the reception counter, SAW resting on its bipod aimed out the door.

Arlain dropped into a crouch across the elevator hall from Gersahw. "Any movement?"

Gershaw shook his head, "Few civilians, nothing armed yet. Won't be for another twenty, thirty minutes. Not for this building, in this neighborhood."

"Word from down below?"

"Seven so far, six to eleven more suspected."

"One-One," Thorngrave called from back down the hall, "with me. Two-One needs reinforcement for a strong point."

Arlain grunted once, detailing Law to watch the stairs, and Jubal to secure the lift. He trusted Law not to shoot him when he came back up the stairs when this was over, but had no such illusions about Jubal. Thorngrave led him down three flights to the lowest level, and there were far more signs of trouble here. Bullet holes in the walls, expended tazer cartridges, even a couple of empty clips.

The front was divided into four workrooms, while the rear was apparently storage for the more sensitive materials. Suarez was up front, where he apparently had several Revenants pinned down in one workroom. Taggart and Mahmoud were in back, with a similar situation but more numbers to play with.

Arlain followed Thorngrave up the hall, to find Suarez crouched against the right hand wall, covering the last door on the right. Thorngrave put a hand on Suarez's shoulder to warn him, then asked, "Status?"

"At least three, possibly five," Suarez said, "not armed, but they've had time to get spells up. Used a frag to blow the door before they were fully set. Stupid Mexicans have been shouting challenges to single combat ever since. I was waiting for cover before tossing grenades and going in."

"Let's see if they're fanatics or not," Thorngrave said back, then raised his voice, shouting in Spanish. "Attention, this is Adept Uriel Thorngrave, Circle Operations, on behalf of the Lords. Lay down your arms and surrender, and you will not be harmed." The response was immediate and unequivocal. A buster spell flashed out the doorway and detonated against the far wall, accompanied by shouted insults in Spanish. Thorngrave listened for a moment, then shrugged. "Well, that's that. I'll shield, you two toss grenades then open up."

"I'll cross over," Arlain volunteered. I can self cover for that, just give me a second to get set."

"Go."

Arlain checked his weapon to verify it was charged, both bullets in the rifle and a tazer round in the under-slung, then stepped out into the center of the hall carefully, covering the door in case one of its occupants had line of sight. Then he settled into a crouch, generated a heavy shield in a large disc to his right, and charged. It only took three long strides to cross the door, but two busters slammed into the shield in that time, and a third went over his head. He skidded to a halt and slammed into the wall, but managed not to bounce back.

Dropping into a crouch, he fished out one of the flash-bangs, verified it was one of those Gershaw had warded, then pulled the pin and nodded to Thorngrave. The other mage matched his nod, then gestured once. A black haze flowed over the door for a moment, then stabilized into a lower-light level, like looking through tinted glass. Arlain let the shield stabilize, then waited a second longer, looking for an opening for his grenade.

"Toss 'em," Thorngrave ordered, "shield's permeable one way."

Suarez and Arlain moved at the same time, tossing their grenades across each other, "Flash out!" Then both of them ducked back and faced away, opening their mouths and covering their ears for the blast.

The two flash-bangs detonated as one, and even with a wall in between it screwed up Arlain's hearing. Bad as it was for him, though, it had to have been far worse for those inside the workroom, and he pushed up to the door before they could react, swinging his rifle around the door as Suarez did the same from the other side. They saw a group of five men and women behind a shield, all holding their ears and blinking or squinting. They were on the ground, struggling to orient, except for one woman who still held a shield over them.

Arlain put a three-round burst into the shield, aiming high deliberately, just as Suarez did the same, and the shield-piercers worked as advertised. The first three or four detonating against the shield as the magical obstruction converted their kinetic energy into thermal energy. The fifth and sixth crashed through the destabilized shield and snapped off the rear wall viciously.

"Tazers," Arlain muttered, suiting actions to words. He nailed the conscious woman before she could get rebuild her shield, and she spasmed as she crashed to the floor. Suarez rose and moved in, Arlain and Thorngrave following behind. They took no chances, putting a tazer round into each mage, then Suarez and Arlain zip-tied the lot. By the time they were done, Taggart and Mahmoud had come forward, and reported three more captures and one more casualty, the rest of the floor secure.

Thorngrave took the report with only the slightest of smiles, "Good work. Team Two, start taking everyone up. One-One, verify the next floor up, I'll take the first basement."

"Send someone up the stairs first," Arlain warned Suarez, "remind Jubal not to shoot you as the lift goes by."

"He's not that bad," Taggart said, then looked a little doubtful, "is he?"

"There's a reason Jubal's the forward scout," Arlain said, then headed for the stairs. On the way, he triggered his radio and warned Law and Jubal not to shoot, then sent Law up to the roof to verify it was still secure. Verifying the cleared floor was done quickly, as Team Two took their gathered prisoners and casualties to the roof. Getting them up the stairs from the top floor, where the elevator stopped, proved the most exhaustive part of the entire operation. By the time the Mexico City Police responded to the ruckus, the team was puling back to the roof, and the first Sea Stallion was on its way back to the coast and their rendezvous. The second was hovering a little unsteadily at the edge of the roof, rear ramp down, and Arlain was never more relieved to get aboard.

He had his team and Team Two, with five captures, aboard the second bird, all the rest and the casualties having been taken aboard the first helo with Team One. Taggart and Law were up front, Jubal and Mahmoud in the last two seats on the left. Arlain settled into the last seat on the right, behind Suarez, and relaxed just a little, letting the others cover the prisoners. It was dangerous, being cargo in a helicopter on its way out of airspace it was not supposed to be in, but it was also out of his hands. It was the pilot's job to get them the Hell out of Dodge, and nothing Arlain did would affect that in the least. That made most men nervous, but he saw no reason to let someone else's responsibilities worry him.

"So," Suarez said, leaning back to be heard over the roar of the rotors, "think Schuster's going to shit-can us for this stunt?"

"There's no excuse like success," Arlain shouted back with a grin. Which was true enough, as far as it went.

Already, however, Arlain was thinking this over, comparing this mission to Shanghai and Cairo. Cairo had failed because of completely external events, the Seed attack which no one could have predicted. Shanghai, however, had most definitely been compromised, word leaked to the target. Suspicions were running rampant as to where the leak was and how much said leak knew, but the Shanghai mission argued for someone very high up, and very knowledgeable. Hughes had gone ballistic when that fact sank in, and for the first time in their history, the Circles were being vetted by an outside agency – the good Colonel had 'arranged' for the FBI to go through the entire Shanghai mission with a fine-toothed comb, and no one was quite sure what he was going to do when the traitor was found.

This mission, so close to completion, gave uncomfortable weight to Thorngrave's pet theories on where the leak was.

The building they had just emptied was a known Revenant Admin center, in one of the riskier sections of Mexico City. It was safe enough there, as were the mages that used it, thanks to a combination of their own power, and their local reputation – no one wanted to mess with 'witches', so long as those witches kept to themselves. The building was a known target, but low on the priority list, mostly because it was so close to America and Hughes' own base of support and thus probably lacking in valuable personnel or information, but also because, however valuable the information it contained, securing the area to hold the building would have required almost as much in terms of manpower and political clout as the Shanghai mission for less return.

But Thorngrave had not planned to hold the _building_. His op had been targeted solely on its _personnel_. He had put forth very solid arguments as to their value, and a plan that was just as solid as the Shanghai op. Then he had laid down one absolute law for the op – no one told Schuster or anyone outside the immediate team anything more than absolutely necessary for them to do their jobs. The entire operation was laid on using resources each of the Dogs had gathered over their lifetimes, their individual connections, some minor forgery, and a whole lot of chutzpah. They were not even flying in military birds anymore, the two Sea Stallions had been 'surplussed' years ago and were now the property of a maritime transport company that normally ferried supplies out of Texas to off-shore oil rigs. The ship they were headed for was a large yacht that used to belong to a South American Ghost, prior to said Ghost joining the Revenants and subsequently wandering into Modern Ops' reach.

The fact that the mission had not only gone off nearly perfectly, but had completely surprised the target, argued strongly that whoever had tipped off the Revenants to Shanghai had not done that for this op. That left two real possibilities. Either the leak had not found out about the mission, which argued strongly that said leak was somewhere above Thorngave in the Moderns or, worse, that the leak had known about the mission, and chosen not to reveal it, which argued that one of their own was the leak.

None of those were very relaxing thoughts as Arlain sat in the back of the Sea Stallion, as it shuddered and roared its way to the coast.

00000

Author's Note: Rafiq's size is mostly length (remember, he's a snake), and not all that over-blown. Egyptian Cobras, on which he is based, can get upwards of six feet in length, which while short of two meters, is close enough for government work. Also, familiars seem to be larger than their 'base animal' in animal form. Apologies for the LAW/Law confusion above – the LAW (all caps) referenced above is a 'Light Anti-Tank Weapon', a one-shot rocket launcher intended to take out lightly armored vehicles. Troops used to carry one or two into battle until better rockets and missiles came along, and may very well still carry some. Overkill for a civilian door, but not for an armored door (so long as you aren't worried about what's on the other side of that door). The SAW is a Squad Automatic Weapon, a compact box-fed machine-gun currently used by the US military as exactly what it's called – a squad level machine-gun for heavy support. Also, the tazer-shot-gun-rounds Arlain used – those are real, built to be fired out of a standard shotgun. The 'cut-down underslung shotgun' is, to my knowledge, a complete fabrication of my own fevered imagination.

00000

Advent000: Natalia doesn't quite have a split personality, she's fully aware of the differences and in control, but it is close. Still more of the way you have a different attitude with friends than with family, except Natalia's variance is rather more extreme – and fun! As for the grimoire and symbol, those were both detailed in chapter 5 of the Side Stories. Short version – she got her hands on one of Precia Testarossa's grimoires, managed to decipher it and construct a spell based on El Hazred magic to try and reach her comatose brother. The spell backfired, left her with a cursed eye and an El Hazred symbol beneath said eye. Also took mild mental instability typical of teenagers and made it much worse.

Seaotter: Precia's always a potential variable whenever Natalia shows up, as much because it's fun as for any other reason. As for the length of EW, that's sort of up in the air. I originally figured sixty chapters or so, but that's fluctuated from forty to over a hundred as ideas for improvements and/or variations occur to me and either work or fail. I'm still going to try to stay at around sixty chapters, though. Mollybreaker was fun, and Mercedes and Laura aren't finished yet.

CrimsonDX: Natalia was fun. I was trying to figure out how to show the dichotomy in her character without making her seem completely bonkers (she's not, yet), and the Precia act was all sorts of fun. Here's 'next' for you!


	14. 13 Thunderhead

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-13 – Thunderhead-

Hughes leaned back in his chair and studied the ten men that filed into his office in silence. When Schuster came in, Lieutenant Addler glanced at Hughes, and at the Colonel's gesture, removed himself and closed the door. Once the door clicked shut, Hughes made them wait a little longer, noting that they all staid at a loose parade rest, and the only one who fidgeted was Law. Schuster, for his part, looked perfectly calm, leaning against the closed door, impassive face not quite frowning.

"Suppose one of you children," Hughes began after a minute, "tells me why I have fourteen men and women of various Central American nationalities in a Florida safehouse, swearing up one side and down the other that they were kidnapped by American soldiers? Suppose one of you tells me what, precisely, you were thinking the night before last?"

He could not tell if their expressions shifted to discomfort or amusement, but they mostly remained silent. Uriel shrugged, "I cannot comment on any kidnapping victims in Florida, sir. As for last week, we were conducting a training mission when we stumbled across a group of Revenant mages engaged in activities prejudicial to the Circles' security. We thought you might like to ask them a few questions and convinced them to join us."

Hughes glared at him, "Don't try that bullshit with me, Thorngrave. Your 'training missions' do not include active-duty US Military personnel and equipment, do not include Ghost resources, and do not take place outside the state of Nevada!"

"We were outside Nevada? Duuude I thought we were in _Vegas_." That comment caused a few suppressed laughs, even if it was not clear who whispered it.

"Cute," Hughes commented, then reached down into an open drawer and pulled out a stack of paper. It was only a half-inch thick, but it slammed onto his desk with a most satisfying 'bang'. "That, gentlemen, is the hard-copy annotated version of Miss Yagami's surrender terms from March. Those are the the terms that keep her from slaughtering all of us in an afternoon. And you idiots just violated the most critical tenant with this stunt! Congratulations! You may very well have destroyed the Circles, because you couldn't be bothered to follow procedure!"

"All due respect, sir," Thorngrave said, "but the Witch isn't about to complain about Tuesday's mission. We hit the people who are most dangerous to her, and never went within a hemisphere of her people."

Hughes snorted at that, "Work on your observational skills, Thorngrave. You're obviously deficient. Akira, you mentioned that you had a critique of their performance you wanted to share?"

The pseudo-being faded into existence through Thorngrave, strolling across the room to stand at the windows to one side, hands clasped behind his white-clad back. "More of a series of observations, Master Adept."

"Feel free," Hughes agreed, mentally noting that Thorngrave had not even twitched when Akira walked through him. The entire team, including Schuster, were now on-edge, though, out of their easy rest and shifting very slowly to surround Akira. It would have been impressive, especially since about half of them seemed to be moving to shield _him_, if Hughes had not been certain Akira could handle all of them, with their weapons elsewhere.

"First, your monitoring was sub-par. I was never more than ten meters from you, Thorngrave, yet you never so much as thought of me. You rely too much on your hardware. A little heat magic, and all that ammunition you carry will kill you just as thoroughly as it will your enemies. Your attack was professional enough from a purely military stand point, but utterly lacking from a magical standpoint. Against a competent opponent, your lack of magical defenses would have left the lot of you unconscious the instant you hit the building. Finally," he turned around, glaring at Thorngrave, "if you slip your leash again, puppy dog, I will put you all down, permanently, regardless of your target. We noticed your departure from your little 'base' in Nevada, and my Master very nearly authorized me to slay the lot of you, before we determined you were bound for Mexico City. You violated the truce. My Master and My Lady understand that this was done on your own childish initiative, but you nonetheless violated the truce. Your next mission will be fully reviewed by us before you are permitted to undertake it, and one of us will accompany you on that mission, to make certain you remain honest. Give me any reason, and I will slaughter you like a dragon amongst the sheep." He vanished without a sound, just a ripple of wrong that left a queasy feeling in Hughes' stomach, like riding a boat in rough weather.

"And that, gentlemen," Hughes said, "is half the reason I am contemplating shit-canning the lot of you and throwing them in the stockade for a few years for insubordination. You knew about the requirement to warn Miss Yagami, you know how vicious and powerful Akira and Takashi are, and yet you still pulled this stunt. What the hell were you thinking?"

"Pretty much what I'm thinking now," Thorngrave commented. "He can threaten all he likes, the Witch is too savvy to do more than complain if we 'slip up' and don't warn her about a couple of ops half the world away from her stomping grounds." Then Thorngrave's face hardened, "But we've mostly proven that no one on my team is the leak that screwed us in Shanghai. That was worth a risk."

"You've proven that if the leak was on your team, they were smart enough not to reveal themselves," Schuster snarled. "And now they have your trust, and will be all the more effective."

Thorngrave shrugged, "think what you like. We captured fourteen prisoners, killed three more Revenants, and deprived the Revenants of their Central American Admin headquarters for months, at best. And we did it with ten men and a handful of old contacts. A small mission, but a bloody successful one. It's called initiative, Colonel, and it's something we're supposed to exercise. That's why you chose us to be your Black Dogs. Because we're skilled, smart, and self-starting. As for a critique," he pulled a folder from the small of his back under his jacket, and set it atop the truce document. "Here is my official after-action report, including all the usual sections and notes, and some thoughts on how to improve. I'll have to review it, of course, given Akira's claims, but it is still mostly accurate."

Hughes glared at the report, then at Thorngrave, then back at the report. Any way he sliced this one, it was going to be bad. If he came down on the Dogs like he should to keep Hayate and Schuster happy, his best Ops force would develop instant morale problems, and probably try something like this again. If he let them slide like he wanted to, Hayate would be annoyed, Schuster would be even more pissed than he was, and the Dogs would take it as permission to try something like this again. God damn lone-wolf subordinates, he mentally cursed, then fixed his glare on Thorngrave.

"Schuster. Your team is moving to Fort Knox. The Army has agreed to make their training facility and personnel available to us for training, so long as we agree not to operate in US territory. Once there, all of you are restricted to quarters save during training. You don't talk to anyone but each other, you don't mingle with anyone but each other, and you sure as hell do not leave that base without my specific written permission. Understood?"

"Understood, Master Adept," Schuster replied.

"That happens tomorrow. Today, gentlemen, you are going to go over every step of this debacle, from planning through execution through clean up. I've got a debriefing team waiting in one of the lecture halls. They are all cleared for everything involved in this operation, and they have already had preliminary reports. They had some rather interesting things to say based on those, and I look forward to hearing if you can defend yourselves."

Thorngrave's blink and suddenly flat face told Hughes all he needed to. None of these men were used to large-level debriefs, certainly not strategic debriefs like this, and Hughes could not resist chuckling evilly as he headed for the door. Punishment came in many forms.

He had not even reached Addler's desk when the young man pulled the phone away from his shoulder and covered the mouth-piece with one hand. "Colonel? I have a woman calling herself Master Adept Esien, she says she is from Yellowstone Containment, and she's demanding to speak to you."

Hughes frowned, then reached for the phone. He had heard of Esien, of course, she was one of the more powerful Containment mages in North America. But Containment were playing things mighty cagey all around, and especially did not have anything to do with higher ups in either the Moderns of the Revenants. "Hughes here," he said.

"Ah, little Gareth," Esien's voice was gravelly, but amused. "Your mundane assistant is quite fierce in defending your time. Pat him on the head for me, would you?"

Hughes rolled his eyes, but tried to keep any exasperation out of his voice. "Master Adept, my aide is careful of my time because I have so little of it. What can I do for you?"

"I have been speaking with my colleagues in Containment. Your little tiff over succeeding the Grand Circle needs to end. Now. We have more important things to deal with, and this childish spat is distracting you all from your duties."

Hughes felt a rush of anger at that, at someone else questioning his decisions and efforts to save what he could. "That's not particularly helpful. I will welcome the Revenants back whenever they want to come, but we are not ready to take on Hayate again."

"That girl! Pah! She is of no moment. A fallen mortal is nothing next to the remnants of the Lords of Light. Their artifacts are stirring, Garreth, and you and your people are responsible. Your squabbling over a pretty girl is distracting us from the dangers that remain under our guard. End this squabble, or the rest of the world will pay the price."

00000

Assignment to the _Shiva_ had been one of the proudest moments of Reian's life. While all officers held shipboard duty posts at various times, and he was the most junior member of the ship's combat mage compliment, posting directly to the _Shiva_, and especially to this sector, was what made it exciting. The past decade had earned it the unofficial nickname 'Demon Sector', due as much to the Badlands that bordered it as the never-ending trouble the region seemed to spawn. When Admiral Aignu assigned him to the security teams on Terra, he had been even more thrilled. After the trouble Hayate had run into, Reian had expected the sort of battle where he could really show his skill, prove his worth.

Instead, he had spent the better part of three months standing around under the desert sun watching a bunch of backwards magic-users try to do the impossible. He had expected to be fighting these 'Circle Mages', and instead was reduced to playing body-guard to make sure they did not get up to anything shady. He had been a little confused at first, as to why anyone was worried about people who were so manifestly ignorant of magic, given that all they were doing was pouring power into a null space. Everyone knew the nulls were permanent, that nothing could affect one, and anything poured into one was lost. But as he had spent time here, taking his place in the watch schedule at the four ritual sites, he had realized he was watching the impossible. His disappointment had faded, though not completely, even though he was only peripherally interested in such cerebral magic.

Then had come the Seed attack. He had not had time to do more than react during the attack, and most of that reaction had been focused on one thing – Admiral Aignu, nice as she usually was, would skin him alive if anything happened to Librarian Takamichi. Anything left over would be handed offered up as a sacrifice to Admiral Hallaoun, and anything he left would be used to placate the Librarian's famously terrifying _wife_. Much as Reian admired all those people, he had no desire to meet them under such circumstances.

It was only after the attack that Reian had time to be afraid for himself. He had come very close to being injured himself, and only his armor had saved him from that, when he tackled the Librarian. That had given him a very close look at the Seed, and watching them tear into the Circle's defenders had been horrific. Their claws had left long ragged wounds, though thankfully they had not bitten anyone, and the thought of suffering such damage himself had sent chills down his spine. He had been trained for combat, even trained to some extent to fight enemies with various protections from magic. But most of those had been machines, semi-autonomous robots, for all their flexibility and immunities. The Seed, for all he had been told they were artificial, had been very much alive.

Given that, he was far from surprised by how antsy the Circles' guards had become in the aftermath of the attack. The number of guards had not increased, but there had been a significant number of transfers, and the new men had a much harsher presence than those they had replaced. They had also rearmed, with patently heavier weapons, and were practicing with those weapons on a daily basis, far more seriously than they had before the Seed attacked.

The guards' new commanding officer had also been a change. The prior commander had been distant, and rather forced in his politeness, but he had been polite. The new commander, an Egyptian Army major named Tariq Hassed, was anything but polite. He had made no secret of the fact that he despised the Bureau personnel, and made it abundantly clear that he would brook no interference from them in his responsibilities. At the same time, he had made it clear that he accepted the necessity of their presence, and while he was not going out of his way to be cooperative, made it clear that any trouble between the two forces would be the fault of Bureau personnel, not his. Dealing with him was uncomfortable, which was probably why Reian was still assigned to the northern site where the entire operation was commanded. None of his seniors wanted to deal with Hassed's abrasive personality.

So when Hassed stormed out of the command trailer, given all that he had been contemplating, Reian was more than a little nervous to see the short stocky man headed directly for him. Pulling himself together, Reian managed a credible greeting in Arabic, "Good morning, Major. What can I do for you?"

Hassed stopped cold a few yards away, hands on his hips, and just glared for a moment. Then he glanced back at the stone-faced sergeant behind him, before striding forward. He grabbed Reian's shoulder, and hauled him around. "Walk with me, heretic."

Reian started at that, but gave up and let it slide. Hassed never used the term with any venom, strangely enough, but also never called any Bureau personnel anything else. Polite corrections were ignored, impolite corrections accepted as 'proof' of their villainy, and ignoring him only resulted in him returning the favor. It was frustrating, but just ignoring the term and letting the man talk usually resulted in things going smoothly... relatively speaking. So Reian settled for removing his shoulder from Hassed's grip and walking along side him.

Hassed was silent for a time, until they were well outside the perimeter, and there he stopped, staring out at the desert, hands on his hips again. "This is not something I am comfortable discussing, mostly due to the lack of solid information. But I have reason to believe that, within the next day or so, something is going to happen."

That comment took Reian from annoyed cooperation to nervous alert, "Something, Major?"

Hassed grimaced and spat, "'Something'! Don't ask what, the only information I have is that 'something' is going to happen. Given who I learned this from, I do not doubt it, but the lack of specific information is beyond aggravating."

Reian was more than a little confused by that. Annoying, provincial, and prejudiced as Hassed was, he was also thorough, direct, and practical. A warning about 'something happening' should have resulted in whoever gave that warning being verbally flayed, loudly enough to everyone at the site to quote it. "Major? What makes you trust this warning so much, if there is so little detail in it?"

Hassed grimaced again, then sighed and rolled his head back to stare at the sky. "The man who brought it to my attention is an old comrade. He and I have worked together, in the Circles and the Army, for many years now. His family is an old one, they claim unbroken lineage to the original Lords of the Circle, the great heroes who destroyed Atlantis. Whether that claim is true or not, they have always been... uncanny, by Circle standards. Jamal has never fallen into an ambush, for instance, not even down south, with those Sudanese smugglers and their love affair with their guns and traps. Whenever I have heeded his warnings, I have not been disappointed. Whenever I have ignored them, I have regretted it. This morning, he woke me against all precedent and insisted that 'something' is going to happen in the next day or so, and that whatever it is is horrible."

Hassed paused and shook his head, "Jamal is always right, heretic. That's the only reason I am talking to you about this now. Something is going to happen, and if we do not prepare, that something will kill my men. It may do that anyhow, but I am not willing to lose more of them to pride. I have already ordered reinforcements, altered my deployment plans and put my force on full alert. I suggest you do the same, though I seriously doubt you'll have any luck with your superiors. I've got over a decade of exemplary performance and 'local sources'. But you pass on this warning, kid. And you bloody well better live up to your kinds' reputation when the hammer comes down or, Allah as my witness, I will crawl out of Hell itself to avenge my men."

Hassed spun about and marched back to the perimeter without another word, leaving Reian to stare after him in confusion. At least it was something new to worry at, and Reian turned out to study the desert himself. Out here he would be left alone to think it over, figure out what he was going to do. On the one hand, a warning that was so vague was not something he wanted to pass on to anyone else, let alone his superiors. They had insisted he did the right thing helping Librarian Takamichi get everyone out, instead of fighting, but it was still embarrassing, and he had no desire to test their patience again. At the same time, everything he had seen about Hassed so far said the man was too direct, too much a perfectionist, to pass on such a warning lightly.

Eventually, one simple fact decided him. He had received a vague warning of danger, but he was too junior to actually take action on it. So he reached mentally for the Shiva, _'Comm Officer, this is Ensign Reian, Terran Security detachment. Is Commander Tessai available?'_

Issa answered immediately, _'Hey, Reian, enjoying your vacation down there? I'm afraid the Commander retired for the night an hour ago, though. Is it an emergency?'_

Ignoring her half-joking, half-insulting question, Reian turned it over. It was not an emergency yet, but Hassed's warning had been 'today', and Tessai would not be back on duty, probably not even awake, for hours yet. _'I don't need him specifically, but if the Duty Officer is available?'_

_'Sure,'_ Issa chirped, _'just a moment.'_

He barely had time to register the mental hiccup of being redirected, when the Duty Officer answered, _'Admiral Aignu, go ahead Ensign.'_

Reian choked on that for a second, suddenly utterly terrified that he was making a horrible mistake. But he had started the contact, so, _'Ah, sorry to disturb you, ma'am, but... the local garrison commander just passed on a... rather odd warning, and I'm not sure how to respond to it.'_

_'Trouble from the locals?'_ She seemed almost amused, _'I would think they would know better, after how Hayate and her kids handled them. What was the warning, Ensign?'_

_'I don't think it's a threat from the locals, ma'am,'_ He said, _'Hassed doesn't like us, but he knows what would happen if his people did try anything. He's also worried about his own men, about how this 'something' is going to affect them. Unfortunately, that's the warning – 'something' is going to happen today or tomorrow. He claims one of his men has some sort of vague precognitive ability. I wouldn't believe it, normally, but given how strange everything else around here has been, and how much trouble we've already had...'_

_'Understandable, Ensign, and you made the right move calling the ship. There was nothing specific in the warning?'_

Reian shook his head automatically, _'No, ma'am. Hassed was rather upset about that himself. Says he has already called in reinforcements of his own, and...'_ he turned back to the camp, and sure enough the guards were moving, almost all of them, _'... he's put his entire force on alert. Whatever this is, he's taking it seriously.'_

_'Be very careful, Reian,'_ Aignu said, and Reian's eyes widened in surprise. He had not even thought she knew his name, and she had never used it. _'He could very well have told you that to get you to overlook his preparations for an ambush. I want you on your guard. The other Terran Detachment personnel are contacting us now, probably similar reports. I'm going to activate the rest of our mages, you'll have reinforcements shortly. Don't tell anyone in the Circles, but __Shiva__ will be in orbit in... fifteen hours. You're right... given how odd things are on that planet, this bears looking into. Stay calm, be careful, we'll be there soon. I'll come down to talk to the Major myself.'_

_'Understood, ma'am, and thanks. I'll be here, we'll be ready.'_

As the connection faded, Reian found himself relaxing for a few moments. He had passed on the vague warning, and not been ridiculed. Not only that, but he was getting reinforcements, friendly faces to deal with Hassed and whatever the major was so worried about. That thought ended his relaxation, as new worries surfaced. He was no longer going to be on his own, sure, but now he was going to be under his superiors' gaze again, and they would be watching and analyzing his every move. If he screwed up now, even a little, they would know and remember it. Worse, the Admiral was aware of his existence, and for someone of his rank, that was either a harbinger of great and wonderful things, or his career's death sentence.

Sighing at his own ability to find the cloud in any silver lining, he muttered, "Great, I can't win for losing. Well, time to get to work. Don't want the major's boys panicking when the boss shows up."

00000

Sunday afternoon, when the rest of his classmates disappeared into the main workroom, Didier slipped into one of the secondary workrooms just a minute late, but cringing mentally in fear of being yelled at. Sure it was just Shamal-sensei and Cidela, but a teacher was a teacher, and late was late, even if this was an 'ad-hoc' class.

Shamal just smiled at him, however, beckoning him over. "Good afternoon, Didier, did you have a good morning?"

"Um, yes, ma'am," he said, still nervous.

"Good," then she frowned slightly, and waved again, "come over here, Didier, I don't bite. You're going to have to be close for this lesson." He nodded, sucked up his courage, and closed the distance to stand next to her, just beside Cidela. Shamal smiled again, "Good.

"Now, we've been working on your shields and your speed with them, Didier, but today I'd like to try something rather different. Cid-chan and I are going to teach you a very specific spell. It's small, uses very little energy, and is very precisely targeted and thus limited in scope. It is actually a training exercise, rather than intended for general use, but it will be a good place for you to start, and for Cid-chan to practice."

Didier nodded, "It's a healing spell, right? Why does Cide... Cid-chan need it?"

"Practice," Cidela told him, "I can heal major wounds very easily, but I go overboard on smaller ones, use too much energy, use it inefficiently. Last year I tried to heal some papercuts on Noriko's finger tips, I wound up healing days of built up stress and muscle fatigue, a slew of minor strains, and accumulated stress on her linker core. When I was trying _not_ to fix some paper-cuts."

"You're getting better," Shamal told her, giving Cidela's hair a caress, "it's just a matter of practice, which is what this spell is for."

"Yes, okaa-san," Cidela said with a long suffering smile. "It just gets frustrating."

"So," Shamal turned back to Didier, "we'll start with the spell. As I said, it's a training exercise more than anything," she gestured with one hand, and a screen formed, filling immediately with the details of a spell. "It is the magical equivalent of a band-aid..."

For a few moments, Didier tune her out, studying the spell on the screen. It was significantly more complex than anything he had tried yet, a delicate structure of magic meant to interface safely with living organisms. That made it a challenge he could comfortably contemplate, not like the busters and shields and augmentations Lotte's class was covering, but he was confused on one point.

"Um, Shamal-sensei? Not that I mind but... isn't this supposed to be about defending myself?"

"That is part of it, yes. You're wondering how healing can be defensive? Musume?"

Cidela nodded, "Healing in battle, as okaa-san does, can make the difference between victory and defeat, allowing a small number of mages to act as many times their number. Treating and repairing wounds in the midst of battle will allow the injured mage to continue fighting, where without that healing they would be eliminated, weakening their fellows' efforts."

"One reason, a good one to think of given our own circumstances," Shamal told her, "but not the only one. Are you familiar with paramedics? A paramedic generally rides in ambulances or with firemen, and is responsible for stabilizing injured people at accidents, fires, disasters of any sort. I've spoken with some Japanese paramedics, after February, and every one of them would love to have even this simple spell. Even if you choose to never go near a battle, there are still places in every-day life where magic such as this, or shields, or a teleport, or almost anything we teach you to do with magic, will be useful."

"A buster could be used to clear debris from trapped earthquake victims," Cidela said.

"Or a shield used to keep the building from collapsing," Shamal said. "A strong enough shield could even put out a fire, starve it of oxygen. The scrying magic can find people trapped by fire or collapse, and direct rescuers to those in the most dire straits. Or all of it can be used simply to run a clinic, to function as a 'normal' doctor, as Cid-chan wants to. So, I will not teach you buster spells, or force you through team exercises, but what I will teach you will have applications in battle."

Didier nodded slowly. He had understood the point of shields, since this was supposed to be a class on 'protection'. But this... Shamal's explanation and examples settled into his mind, and he found himself for the first time thinking beyond survival, beyond an escape from home. "How does it work, Shamal-sensei?"

She nodded once, "Good. The spell is mostly a matter of delicate control, much like a binding spell."

It took a long time for Didier to get it 'right' by Shamal's standards, though he lost track of time rather quickly. Cidela managed that far more quickly, but Shamal made her go back over it again and again, repeating the spell endlessly while Didier tried to get it right. Finally, though, both of them were ready, and Shamal did something completely unexpected – she pulled out a knife, and sliced herself across the tip of one finger.

She actually giggled a little at their gasps, "Don't worry, this is just a little nick, for practice. I'm not about to cut one of you, after all! Or cut some poor innocent creature. Either of you can heal this easily. We'll start with you, Didier, to give Cid-chan some practice maintaining her control."

While the idea of 'testing' a new spell on his teacher was more than a little daunting, Didier did not let that stop him. Lotte had no problem 'playing guinea pig', after all, and he was under orders. So he tried not to think about the fact that this woman could flatten him with a thought, and focused on the spell, on calling up the energies, shaping them precisely right, settling them into the form of the spell positioned on the wound to seal it closed and bring the skin cells back into contact.

There was a moment of... awareness, for want of a better term. He was aware of the wound, the blood, the skin cells, the blood vessels, and laying over all of it, the power of the spell. It took only a few seconds for the power to weave the disparate parts of the tiny wound to the parts the knife had separated them from. It was a little nauseating, to realize that this was living flesh he was manipulating, but at the same time, it was incredibly interesting, to realize that a spell this simple, so little energy, could accomplish so much.

Shamal gave him a short critique, essentially 'not bad for a first try', then cut three of her fingers the same way. "All right, Cid-chan. You're task is to heal one of these, using just that spell, but leave the other two."

Cidela nodded, but with a stiff motion and strained expression that left Didier somewhat confused. He understood that she needed practice in fine control, that her magic was very nearly a rogue gift, but he had yet to actually see that demonstrated, before now. This looked like she was straining so hard she was hurting herself, for a spell even he could manage. Even as she reached out one finger, glowing green with the spell, she moved with painful caution, despite forming the spell in the blink of an eye. The flash of green rolled from her finger to Shamals, and he caught a flash of more green acing to the other two wounds. When the light cleared, there was no trace of the wound Cidela had touched, a pink line where the second had been, and the the third was scabbed over.

"I'm sorry, okaa-san," Cidela sighed, slumping slightly.

"That's all right, Cid-chan. You did better than I expected, better than you managed last month. It's all a matter of practice and progress, every little bit is good."

"I just... wish it wasn't so hard," Cidela said, and to Didier's shock, she reached out a casual finger and, without any sort of spell, simply erased the last cut on Shamal's finger. Then Cidela frowned, "You should have told me you pulled your back and knee. They're old... a couple days... training with Zafira-sensei, right? I could have fixed them then."

Shamal shook her head, "They were minor injuries, Cid-chan, nothing I haven't had before. They were healing just fine on their own. Now, that was a good beginning, but I think both of you can do better. So, let's run a few more practices, then we'll try again."

Shamal put them through two more attempts on the healing spell, including one deep cut to show Didier the spells limitations. As she had said, it was more of a 'band-aid', binding the wound closed and healing skin and capillaries, but note the more variegated nerves and muscles beneath. Despite that, Didier could see ways to expand on it, ways to improve on it, and found himself more and more intrigued by Shamal's idea of a paramedic or doctor.

Finally Shamal dismissed them, "Didier, practice the spell, but please don't go cutting yourself or anyone else. Cid-chan, you'll eat dinner up at the house tonight. Please?"  
Cidela nodded, "Yes, okaa-san, tonight. Just dinner, though."

"Just dinner," Shamal agreed, "come on."

Didier had several more questions, mostly about just why Cidela had such trouble with control, but managed not to ask them. Partly he thought it would be rude, but he was also somewhat afraid of the answers, wondering if something similar could happen to him. Then, as they exited the classroom building, a motion on the ground caught his eye, and he froze in a moment of terror as something flashed past his feet. Before his heart started again, he recognized Rafiq, and watched the snake curl up Cidela's leg until the girl reached down, at which point the snake wound up her arm to settle around her torso and neck, flickering his forked tongue along her cheek.

"Welcome back, Mistress," Rafiq said, making Didier shiver as he relaxed.

"Hello, Rafiq. Did you have fun while I was gone?"

"Found a mouse," Rafiq replied, "stole it from Meghan." Then he fixed Didier with a flat gaze, "Tasted gamey, though."

Didier grimaced, thinking about being the poor mouse, but Cid-chan just laughed, tapping the snake on the nose, "Don't be mean, Rafiq. He's from Africa, a lot of snakes around where he grew up."

"Not all of them were serpents, either," Didier said. "Sorry, Rafiq, you just surprised me. Don't handle those well. Plus, no offense, but you're kinda strange, take some getting used to."

"Because I made him like this," Cidela protested, "he's not strange, just different."

"Go ahead up, Cid-chan," Shamal told her, "See if Hayate needs any help in the kitchen. I'll be along shortly, I want to talk to Didier about the exercise a little more."

Cidela headed out, and Shamal waited until she was far enough away not to overhear. "Does Rafiq bother you that much?"

Didier shook his head, "No, he just surprised me. Back home... back home, surprises at ground level usually mean mines. The rebels were always fond of spring-loading them, so they'd pop up before detonating."

Shamal flinched at that, but let it slide, "Good. I've noticed many of your classmates are nervous about him. You know he's harmless, right?"

"Well, I don't know that," Didier shrugged, "but he can't be too dangerous if you let him stay with Cidela. He's probably safer than Lotte-sensei."

Shamal smiled at that, "True, but I'm glad you aren't afraid of him. He is not always present, because Cid-chan needs to learn control on her own, but he has things to learn himself, and will be present for more of our lessons, as the year moves on. But in all honesty, I wanted to talk to you about something else. While she hasn't had quite so violent an experience, Cid-chan is in a very similar situation. Her own family rejected her, when she came here. The two of you share a lot in common, and I thought you might like to talk about it. Or about home."

It was Didier's turn to flinch. "Nothing to talk about."

"Please don't lie, Didier," Shamal said, "especially not when it's so obvious. You were caught in..."

"I've already talked about it," Didier interrupted, "time and again. Father has had me talking to shrinks for over a year now. There's nothing left to say. I know perfectly well that there was nothing I could have done, in any of it. I'm not avoiding Yussef's class because it give me nightmares, I'm avoiding it because I will never risk doing that to anyone else. There's nothing else to talk about."

"There is the fact that you still have nightmares," Shamal said. "There is the fact that you still react to surprises like Rafiq as if you were in a battle zone. There is the fact that you never speak of your mother or sister."

That felt like she shoved a spike through his chest, and he almost snapped at her. Instead he pulled inwards again, folding up slightly around his crossed arms, staring at the ground. He had to swallow twice before he managed to whisper, "You are my teacher, not my father. I will never speak of mam... my mother with you or anyone else. She is dead, my sister is dead, and there is nothing anyone can do about that."

He stalked off without waiting for her answer, far too busy remembering the first and worst years of his life. He remembered growing up to the sound of gunfire, remembered his mother and father worrying, remembered being moved from place to place as his father worked. He remembered the day that move came too late, and his mother and little sister were killed. He remembered when his father found him again months later and told him it was finished, over the sound of gunfire. Remembered moving into the city, talking for endless hours to men who had no idea what had happened to him, or what it all meant. "There's nothing left to talk about," he insisted quietly, "and nothing worth fighting for."

He was not hungry by the time he got to the dorm.

00000

Shamal pulled an apron of its hook without looking as she entered the kitchen, tying it in place as she sniffed deeply. "That smells wonderfully spicy, Hayate."

"Thank you, Shamal," Hayate replied, "salsa, made with cilantro and a little oregano. Tai-yu suggested Mexican, and Mariachi found a salsa recipe for me. Cid-chan's been snitching."

Closing the oven, Cidela frowned, "I was not snitching, Hayate-sensei, I was taste-testing."

"Snitching," Hayate insisted with a grin. "So was I, to be honest."

Shamal could not resist a 'taste-test' of her own, snagging a chip from the conveniently open bag on the counter. The salsa was spicy enough, with a little twist that gave it some extra bite. "That's rather stronger than I'm used to. Good, but strong."

"Zafira won't touch it," Hayate said, shaking her head, "I'll have to try again for him another time."

"Do you need help with anything?"

Hayate chuckled, "Just cleanup, I'm afraid, though there isn't much. Cid-chan's already got most of it."

While they were working on that, Hayate asked telepathically, _'did you have any luck with Didier?'_

Shamal sighed and shook her head, _'I'm afraid not. Subtle suggestions did not work, and it appears direct attempts are going to require more... official intervention... than I would prefer. He flatly refused to discuss it.'_

_'He has that option, Shamal,'_ Hayate reminded her. _'Just because it is the wrong one, does not mean he cannot take it.'_

_'I know, but he needs to talk about it. Even more than Noriko and Laura last year, or Juliet over the summer...'_

Hayate laid a hand on her shoulder, _'You helped them, you'll help him eventually. He's just going to take a little longer to admit he needs it. You know how proud people can be about sharing their wounds. Look at Takashi. A grown man who still can't admit when he needs help. Look at Chrono-kun... if he ever admits to being less than perfectly fine the world will end.'_

_'I know, but... Juliet's experience is energizing her, driving her. Noriko and Laura, all the students last year, were fighting back, were never simply victims. Didier... he was only a child, __is__ only a child, and my pushing means he's going to have nightmares tonight.'_

"Didier needs to be pushed, okaa-san," Cidela said, "he's a boy. Boy's don't ask for help, the take it when it's pushed on them. Like Yussef and Laura."

"Laura is not a boy," Signum commented from the kitchen entry.

"But she acts like one, Signum-sensei."

For their parts, Shamal and Hayate asked one another simultaneously, on a much tighter sending, _'Did you include her?' _ They both shook their head slightly, before Shamal turned a worried eye on her daughter. Cidela showed no signs of being aware of anything but monitoring the oven, so Shamal remained silent, while mentally scheduling another, deeper, scan. _More trouble for my little girl, _she thought,_ Kami-sama, please let this just be an anomaly. She shouldn't have to deal with something else going out of control._

00000

Kell Shock: The Corsican Brothers is a story about a pair of twins separated at birth, there's a couple movies and I think it's a book from the 1800s, a la The Three Musketeers. There's a couple variations on their different upbringings, but the big thing is, any injury one suffers, they both suffer. The trio are still stuck with their too-tight device bonds, and that is a weakness, but it's not as bad as Yussef is painting it. Still a dangerous weakness. You're right about the quote mark in the last scene – fixed! The civil war has been 'active' all along, just not 'front stage' active. Because Hayate is only monitoring, and the kids aren't involved, it's only background to most of the characters. Things are getting busy for the Black Dogs, though.

Baughn: Um, well, yeah... that was _long_ review, and it wound up being an even longer reply. So, I bent my own rules, and shudder sent a direct reply. Gah, the horror! Seriously though, good points, as usual, and thank you.

Advent000: The Moderns' leak is a plot point, so I'm afraid you'll have to remain curious, at least for a while:). As to the trio's link, it's mostly detailed by now – anything that happens to the device, happens to them, and in return they get a small boost in efficiency (less than 5). A twist and extra boost, but not worth the price.

CrimsonDX: Yep more updates, and the next one should be quicker, it's partly written as of now. Allina and Niranjana are something of a personal experiment – to see if can I do something remotely resembling a romantic relationship, even with a peripheral plot like those two. We'll see. There will be more on the devices, but not for a couple chapters as other events overtake, but I think most of tem will make people happy. Rafiq will get a human form, it just takes too much energy for a non-device mage to safely generate (at least, by Rafiq's estimate, when Cidela's providing the power... he's a touch overprotective).

FabienLeLez: glad you're enjoying this, and liked Academy Blues. Laura's the single most entertaining character I've got at the moment, but in all honesty, a lot of the 'Laura-isms' are lifted direct from real life. My friends and family are some of the snarkiest most sarcastic people you will ever meet, which I like. Personally, though, I think Laura's too fond of mornings. A 'good' morning starts around sun-down, in my opinion. Laura has become the primary character, though in large part that was the evolution of events in the Academy Blues. She is (and was always meant to be) one of those people that dominates the area around her, but so are Noriko and Yussef (at least, they're supposed to be), they're just quieter about it than Laura. In all honesty, the characters I am most interested in for this story are Natalia, Cidela, and the twins. I've got some scenes planned for most of the students and teachers, though, that will give most of the characters their own 'moment in the sun'. Just going to take a while to get to all of them, given that they're happening at different times.

Skyfall 2.0: No problem with the long review, you had good points all around. As with Baughn, though, I'm afraid my reply was just as long, so I've sent it to you separately. Thanks for reading and for the review!

swordbunny4486: Thanks, glad you liked it!


	15. 14 Reality Fails

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-14 – Reality Fails-

Journeyman Turo was more than slightly worried. Lord Protector Yosho had entered the chamber of the Masters of Vision to a full conclave over three hours ago, and while the chamber was heavily shielded, the dull roar of raised voices and shouting had been occasionally audible through those shields. While the Lord Protector was a part of the Masters himself, and one of the more respected and powerful members, today he had been summoned to testify, rather than the usual 'summoned to conclave', which was never a good sign.

When the chamber finally opened again, Turo shoved off the wall he had been leaning against and stiffened to attention as the ornately carved and enchanted double-doors cracked open silently. He stayed there, staring at the far wall and carefully not looking at the lone man coming out of the cavernous chamber beyond, until Lord Protector Yosho stopped in front of him. He missed Yosho's slight smile, and almost flinched when the Lord Protector rested a hand on his shoulder.

Yosho waited until Turo looked at him, "Relax, young one. No need to observe the formalities on this side of the door."

Turo nodded slightly, since he could not salute properly without striking Yosho, "Yes, Master Adept."

"Come," Yosho continued, "walk with me. I have much to do, if we are to preserve our people from the Masters' foolishness. Szash's impromptu inquisition has resulted in precipitous movement, movement we are not ready for."

"Is it about the anomaly, sir?"

"Yes. We're going through it, within a day. A day!" Yosho's tone made the last word a curse, a tone that was viciously angry as he continued, "Szash convinced them she and the Guard can hold against whatever we find out there, against anything at all. Never mind that only three Seed responded to the activation and recall, never mind that one was badly damaged despite what should have been a completely unnoticed passage, never mind that we know nothing of what is beyond that anomaly!"

"It can't be that bad, Master Adept," Turo suggested, "the real-world effects of the rebel's sabotage must have been cataclysmic. I remember some projections, and most of the rebels' mages probably died when the magic faded. With no one to train their children, and no records likely to survive the cataclysm, how can those children hope to threaten us?"

"Projections, estimates, assumptions," Yosho snorted, "the idle thought experiment of some academic who has no way to find out if his assumptions are correct or not." He shook his head, "No, Journeyman, there is no way to know what lies on the far side of the anomaly. The Seed really only confirm that it is the Homeworld, perhaps a later colony. As for training 'the next generation'... we could very well be heading right back into the cataclysm itself. Remember where we are. Time holds no sway here, it progresses for us only because we will it to, need it to. That does not mean it flows here as it does within reality's comforting embrace. We are going in _blind_, and those frightened old men are too scared of where we are to wonder if they are taking us someplace _worse_."

Turo was actively frightened now, not so much by his superior, as by the situation. He had worked for the Protectors ever since passing his Journeyman's exam years ago, and had never seen or heard of Master Adept Yosho being so visibly upset. Admittedly, as a junior member he had relatively little official contact with the Lord Protector, but there were only a hundred Protectors in the entire city, as opposed to the thousand or so in the Guard. To think that getting out of this limbo the rebels' saboteurs had imprisoned them in was enough to frighten the Lord Protector was beyond scary. But whatever it was, it was their responsibility as Protectors to defend and preserve the people of Al Hanthis, against any threat. "What can we do, sir?"

Yosho stopped cold at that, giving him a studying look. After a second, the Master Adept gave him a slight smile. "Good man. But it's not as bad as you think. We cannot prevent the Masters from carrying through with this foolishness, but we can prepare our own people. Come, we have a day, and cannot afford to waste any of it.

"I'll be putting together a briefing, as much information as we have available. While I do that, I'll need you to find and bring in all the Protectors, on-duty or not, retired or not, all of them. Some of them will argue, don't let them. This is an emergency situation, and we need everyone we can get. Except the cross-assigned. Tell anyone in the Guard to report there for duty. Everyone else, though. Don't take no for an answer. Also, make arrangements for meals, especially high-energy food, in the Protector barracks for at last a week. We're going to have to go for several days straight with no rest, just to secure the city after this stunt. We'll need to keep people calm, keep them in the city..."

00000

Niranjana frowned slightly as Allina kept going past their usual study table in the library, heading up the stairs without a word. In a way, that was 'normal'. It was Wednesday, and every Wednesday afternoon Niranjana helped Ekavir study between classes and dinner. Then Niranjana would find Allina and remind her it was dinner time, and they would go over notes and plans while eating, then continue in Niranjana's room. She still refused to spend any time in Allina's room unless the Brazilian had cleaned it that day. Normally on Wednesdays Allina would stay with her until Ekavir showed up, a couple more minutes of quiet company. But this time, Allina just walked off, without a word or even a glance.

Going after her friend was possible, but Niranjana knew her very well by now. Allina would ignore any questions first, then brush them off, then respond with some excuse about being in a 'lonely mood'. Usually Allina's willful obtuseness was endearing, another cute expression of her geekish inability to interact with anything more emotional than a computer. Recently, however, Allina's refusal to actual say what she was feeling was getting annoying. Niranjana was not worried about _what _Allina would say; she was just tired of waiting for the other girl to _say it_.

"Sempai?"

Ekavir's appearance at her side surprised her, making her start. "Ah, sorry, Ekavir, I was distracted."

He gave her a slight smile, "I know sempai."

"Listen," she cut him off as he tried to continue, "I know we usually study today, but... could we reschedule? I need to talk to Noriko, and the sooner I catch her, the better."

He looked rather more disappointed than she had expected, "Ah... okay. I kinda needed to talk to you about that as well. I've sort of been... drafted... into keeping Laura and Mercedes from killing each other while they work on illusions his afternoon."

Niranjana giggled at that, picturing the wreckage those two would leave in a workroom. "I cannot speak to Mercedes but, if you want help with Laura... ask her how to do something impossible. You won't be able to figure out how she does it, but figuring it out will keep _her _busy for a while."

He looked confused, "something impossible?"

"She's the only one of us who has figured out any form of teleportation," Niranjana told him, "and she has two. One of them Aria-sensei insists should not work the way it does, and one she insists is flat out impossible. So ask Laura how to do something impossible."

"I'll keep that in mind," he said, "but I need to get going. They're meeting now, and Lotte-sensei'll be rather unhappy if I let them blow up a workroom."

She watched him go, becoming a little worried as she thought it over. She could see him keeping Mercedes calm, but only Noriko and Signum had ever really managed that with Laura. _'Lotte-sensei? Ekavir says he is supposed to help Laura and Mercedes. Is that wise?'_

Lotte's mental chuckle was a disturbingly amused, _'He'll be fine, 'Jana-chan.'_

_'Please do not call me that,'_ Niranjana interrupted. That was for Allina, at least since the summer. _'This is Laura we are speaking of, sensei, and Mercedes. Yussef at least keeps himself under control, but Mercedes...'_

_'Ekavir's there because he punked off to me in class today,'_ Lotte replied, _'Nothing I couldn't handle, but not something I want to encourage. So he gets to baby-sit the harpies while they work out their differences. It won't go too far. Signum is monitoring the entire session remotely to be sure of that.'_

_'If you're sure. I just... it would not be pleasant to be in his shoes right now, especially given that he is a first year. We're used to her, he's not.'_

Lotte chuckled again, _'Girl, none of you is that weak. You should've heard Didier yesterday putting Chen-chi in her place. Boy's quiet, but he only moves when he wants to. Ekavir's the same, so are all of you. Besides, I'm thinking of making Laura course-credit. Spend two hours locked in a room talking magic with her, if you're sane when you come out and neither of you is dead, you pass! Hayate-sama doesn't like that idea for some reason.'_

Niranjana sighed and shook her head at Lotte's 'idea', before letting it go. Ekavir would have to look after himself, though it should not be too bad if Signum was keeping an eye on it, so that left her free to seek advice on her other problem. _'Do you know where Noriko is, sensei?'_

_'Somewhere on campus.'_

Niranjana rolled her eyes, _'Thank you, sensei, I'll find her myself.'_

_'Sorry,'_ Lotte actually sounded sheepish, _'I meant, she's out on the grounds, not in any of the buildings. I think she's talking with Hayate-sama, they like to have their little chats out in the woods.'_

_'Thank you, sensei,'_ Niranjana repeated more sincerely, then let the connection fade. If Noriko was talking to Hayate, there was no telling how long they would be. There was also no predicting where Noriko would go after that conversation, since that depended greatly on what they were discussing and what decisions that conversation lead Noriko to make. _No help for it,_ she decided, _I'll have to catch her at dinner._

This left her free for a while, and at odd ends. Studying was possible, of course. With Ekavir off keeping Mercedes and Laura off each other, she could finish her own reviews quickly. Over the past year, however, she had come to appreciate having company while she studied. _Allina is going to be annoying about this,_ she thought, hefting her bag again, _but better her than alone._

She turned to head up stairs, but stopped at seeing Esmeralda. The Spanish girl was standing at the bottom of the stairs, leaning on one rail, looking about with an expression halfway between scared and confused. Moving over, she rested a hand on Esmeralda's shoulder, "What's wrong, Esmeralda? Forget something?"

Esmeralda shook her head slowly, still looking around, "I... I don't know. I just... suddenly feel terrified, for some reason. Like going out on stage for the first time, only worse. But there's nothing here. I mean, I may talk about how you second years are 'scary', but... this is _real_. And it's getting worse."

"Worse?" Niranjana looked around herself, but library was its normal afternoon self. The twins were at one table, Marcel sitting with Yussef and Luke at another. There was no sign of anything the least bit frightening, let alone 'terrifying', even if the twins were fidgeting a little more than usual. "Did you feel like this when the Seed attacked?"

Esmeralda shook her head, "No, I was just surprised, then, until it was all over and Hayate-sensei brought those things through. This is... I don't know." Starting to sound panicked, she demanded, "What's going on?"

Niranjana could only put an arm around her shoulder and try to reassure her. _Wonderful, I have no idea what to tell her, and Noriko's busy with Hayate-sensei. Is she stressing over something personal? Is Laura playing another prank? What's happening... well, logic. She's scared of nothing. Either it's something real that we can't see, or it's in her head. Either she's having a panic attack over personal issues, or someone's trying to frighten her. Exterior threat or prank, those would be from outside._ "Has Lotte-sensei taught you much of shielding yet?" Esmeralda nodded, shivering now. "Build one, wrap yourself in the strongest, most comprehensive shield you can."

Esmeralda nodded, and made a good attempt, but it was plain her fear was overriding her control. Niranjana felt the shield form, felt it push her arm off Esmeralda's shoulders, but it was thin and unsteady, not enough to prove if the fear was internal or external. So the Indian girl built one of her own, just as comprehensive, around the pair of them. That seemed to work, as Esmeralda visibly relaxed.

_'Something going on, girls?'_ It took a second to realize that Tai-yu's voice was telepathic; she had not shown that ability before. _'You're not supposed to be practicing your magic outside of the workrooms.'_

_'Ah, apologies, sensei, but something seems to be channeling fear into Esmeralda. The shield was to see if it was external. I think someone might be playing a prank.'_

Tai-yu answered a moment later, appearing at the edge of the shield as a hazy figure, _'I'm not getting anything from her, can you reach her?'_

_'None of the first years can use telepathy yet, sensei. But I can tell she's calming down. Definitely external.'_ Niranjana paused, then asked, _'could we move to a workroom? If this external source is far enough away...'_

_'Go ahead. I'll have Shamal-san join you shortly.'_

Esmeralda's shield flickered and vanished. While the girl still looked scared, she no longer looked ready to flee, but was instead grimacing at Niranjana's shield. "You're doing this all on your own, aren't you? Two of us at once, and you're chattering with Tai-yu sensei. Can I be you? Just for a day or hundred?"

Niranjana smiled slightly, recognizing frustration rather than actual jealousy. "I build my shield as a self-reinforcing structure. Notice how it's not smooth, but a collection of angles? Luke showed me, each angle buttresses the others, creating greater strength for less energy. I still supply the energy, but the structure makes it more efficient. You will have to stay close to me, however." She took Esmeralda's hand and started pulling her towards the exit, "I'll explain as we walk, we'll see if I can't show you how to do it once we're in a workroom, shall we?"

Esmeralda hesitated, then nodded. As they walked, however, instead of asking about the shield, she asked, "Any idea what's going on?"

Niranjana shook her head, "Only that the source is external to you. I do not recall having read anything of sending emotions magically. Oh, there is usually some bleed through in telepathic communication, but face and posture still convey more emotion than that. Whatever it is, it is beyond me, which is why Tai-yu-sensei is getting Shamal. Speaking of which," _'Aria-sensei? Esmeralda is having some sort of odd magical trouble, and we're going to meet Shamal-sensei in a workroom. Could you meet us there, as well? If Shamal-sensei doesn't mind?'_

_'Ooh, a challenge,'_ Aria answered a moment later, _'Just let my pry myself away from my sister, I'll be there.'_

"I can still feel it, just not as strong," Esmeralda continued in a thinking tone. "It's clearer, sharper. Something's... off, dangerous. Like watching a car crash... or being in one of the cars when it crashes..."

"Perhaps you are a sensor, like Laura, able to detect things farther away than most," Niranjana offered. "She is very sensitive, magically speaking. Signum-sensei had to place special shields on her dorm room last year, when the sensitivity became too much after February. You may just be reacting to the Circles' battles, or perhaps the training has woken your sensitivity enough to sense Egypt. Laura still complains about the null making her sick from here, sometimes."

Explaining Laura's sensitivity took a while, mostly due to the fact that Niranjana was uncertain how much to reveal. Lotte had demonstrated in class, and the September mission to Egypt had proven, that as useful as it was, it was probably Laura's biggest weakness, and Laura was rather touchy about that. She had pitched a fit when Lotte ambushed her in class, and so far as Niranjana knew, only discussed it seriously with Signum. So she was hesitant to go detailing it to anyone, even a fellow student.

The workroom shields proved slightly better than Niranjana's personal shield, though worrisomely, they did not completely block the effect, whatever it was. Shamal and Aria arrived before they could do more than note that, and after a brief review, Shamal pulled Esmeralda into a trance. The two remained there for several minutes, before Shamal woke with a frown, Esmeralda blinking and wavering a little.

"Well, that is very interesting," Shamal said. "You do not have Laura's defined ability, Esmeralda, but you are more sensitive to magic. I would say it is a reaction to beginning your study of magic. Like working out with your muscles, initially your muscles become sore and sensitive, but continued exercise 'toughens' them. This is similar, but your sensitivity is being aggravated by something. The fear, I would hazard, is a psychological reaction to sensing something that you can't explain or describe, but know is 'wrong', which is where things get interesting. Aria, could you please fetch Laura? Esmeralda is reacting to something our own sensors are having trouble pinning down, and I want to see if she is aware of it, or can provide more information."

"She's on her way," Aria said. "I stopped there thinking Esmeralda might have the same issue, but she was in the middle of an exercise with Mercedes." The cat-woman smiled slightly, "Poor Ekavir looked ragged, I think he was contemplating tearing hair out – his or theirs."

"Thank you," Shamal nodded. "Well, until then, shall we work on your shields some more, Esmeralda? Niranjana, if you would be so kind..."

Laura arrived a half hour or so later, looking a little green around the gills. She did not move with her normal energy, and when she closed the door the workroom she hesitated. Then she opened and closed the door, and the room's shields, a few times, as if testing something. When she did walk over to them, she shrugged, "I think I need more shielding practice, Shamal-sensei. I can feel the Egypt mess again. At least, I can when I'm out there."

Shamal frowned at that, "You're certain it's Egypt? Zafira has detected some sort of dimensional disturbance, and he's studying it with the sensor network, but he cannot localize it. The sensors report it all over the planet, even out into space some distance."

Laura nodded slowly, "Fairly sure, yeah. Feels like Egypt did when it happened, it's coming from that direction, I think. What's up?"

"Esmeralda reacted to something in the Library. She's a little more sensitive than she should be – work stress, essentially – and whatever she's feeling, her subconscious interpreted it as something to be very much afraid of. It's the same thing Zafira is tracing and you are feeling." Shamal paused, thinking it over, then nodded sharply. "Laura, go warn Yussef. Nothing is happening now, but don't get too engrossed in anything. Once you've done that, go out to the training circle, and try to trace this disturbance you're feeling. As much information as you can get on it, please. Location, strength, effects, timing, anything.

"Niranjana, stay here and work with Esmeralda on her shields. If she can generate a shield that will let her function but keep this effect from disturbing her, she should be fine. If not, we'll see about shielding her room. Aria, Lotte is already checking the other first years in the Library for me, please check in on Ekavir and Mercedes.

"All of you, if anyone asks, tell them, but please make it clear that there's nothing _wrong _as of yet. Just a disturbance that we want to be cautious of."

"Hai, sensei," Niranjana said.

Laura just sighed, "Oh, sure, give the sick girl the _hard _work. Don't mind me, I'll just go work myself into the grave, wear myself away..."

"That would be more effective if you were not smiling so brightly, Laura-chan," Aria countered with her own grin. "Come on, let's get moving."

Niranjana and Esmeralda worked for another hour or so, slowly building Esmeralda's shield. She was better than Niranjana remembered being last October, due to the sessions Noriko had held before the Kyoto trip, but not quite where Noah had been. Still, the self-reinforcing structure was trickier to build than the basic shields, as the energies had to be precisely arranged and balanced or the shield would be too weak to withstand any disturbance.

She was so engrossed in working with Esmeralda that she managed to forget all about her earlier worries, until the door opened, and Noriko slipped inside. "Sorry to interrupt, girls, but Hayate-sensei wants to see you, Esmeralda. Can you get to her office?"

"I think so," Esmeralda said, "if my shield holds up."

"Go ahead," Noriko told her, "Niranjana and I will be right behind you, we'll catch you if your shield fails." Noriko waited until the Spanish girl was out the door before smiling at Niranjana, "Lotte-sensei said you were looking for me?"

Faced with the moment, Niranjana felt herself suddenly embarrassed and hesitant to talk about it. Her problems with Allina were personal, after all, and not really all that bad. "Um, actually..."

Noriko's smile shrank slightly, "I understand if it's personal, Niranjana, but I promise you, I'll never tell anyone else without your permission."

Niranjana hesitated a few moments longer, waiting until they were walking up the stairs, then very hesitantly began explaining. It seemed so petty and minor when she laid it all out in words, hardly worth bothering Noriko with. But at the same time, Allina's odd behavior was confusing, and worrisome. So she told Noriko as much as she knew, trying to explain why she was so worried about it all, before finishing, "Can you help, Noriko? Please?"

Noriko, who was frowning slightly by that point, nodded slightly, "I think that's going to be a yes and a no. I think I can guess what's going on with Allina, but as for how to go about fixing it... the best I can offer is some suggestions. Something this sensitive, as delicate as your relationship, I've never dealt with it before myself. I've got some suggestions, of course, but you're going to want to be careful. That's going to be key.

"I think the problem is, Allina's talked herself into a corner, and she may not even realize it. You know how insistent she's been since February that you two are 'just sisters'? That reaction to her mother's teasing, and to the rest of us teasing you two? I think a lot of that is her trying to convince herself of that. She's scared of how she feels, how you feel, scared she might be misinterpreting one or the other, scared that if she's wrong, she'll hurt you and lose what she's already got. See what I mean?"

Niranjana nodded slowly, "I think so, and I guess that was what I was thinking but... I can't believe she's scared of me! I'd never hurt her!"

Noriko nodded, "I know that, she probably knows that, but there are always mistakes, right? Niranjana, I know you're smart, but you spend more time thinking in terms of circuits and programs than people and emotions. The rest of us have been watching you two since last year. You're cute together and all, but Allina's definitely afraid of going further. Whether she's afraid of being hurt or of hurting you, I can't say, but she's afraid. You have to admit, it's a scary prospect, going 'official' with someone, especially with another girl. Just because it's publicly accepted in the West doesn't mean it's safe or comfortable. Think about how your family would react."

Niranjana actually flinched at that. Her mother and father were not 'strict traditionalists' by any measure, and she had heard her father speaking out at family and neighborhood gatherings against some of the harsher traditions of India. But she knew without a doubt that both of her parents would explode at the idea of her 'liking' another girl, doubly so since the girl in question was anything but Hindu. That had been her first thought on hearing Allina's mother's joke the year before, even as that 'joke' started her thinking it might have not be a joke. No, her parents would not react well, not at all. "I see what you mean, Noriko. But... what can I do about it? I don't even know how to start a conversation about... well..."

"This is where I'm going to have to plead ignorance. I've got some ideas, mind you. I've watched other people courting, asked some questions of Hayate-sensei and my mother, but," she chuckled slightly, "I'm a little short on experience here myself. The one thing I am sure of is, you have to be careful. It would be very easy to move too fast, to move too slowly, to misinterpret, to say or do something wrong. Look at Laura and Mercedes. One misunderstanding at the start of the semester, and now it's escalated to the point that those two are worse than Laura and Yussef ever were. I think they might even cross over into outright enmity if they keep going. So you have to be careful.

"Other than that, I'm afraid my best suggestion is... talk to her. Tell her how you feel, like you just told me. Make sure she understands both how you feel about her, and how nervous you are. Remember, she's got just as little experience with all of this as you do, and that's part of her problem. So talk to her, be honest, and be careful. Allina's pushy, so you're going to have to push back, at least a little. I know you usually pull the social-aikido route of turning her own energy around to the right course, but this time I think you're going to have to push her, just to get her to admit there's more going on than 'sisters'. But remember, above all..."

"Be careful," Niranjana interrupted. "I see what you mean, Noriko, and thank you. I... need to think about it some more... but... thanks."

"You're welcome, Niranjana-chan," Noriko rested a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "Always glad to help. Now, let's see how well..."

"Noriko!" Laura's shout from halfway across the quad was a surprise, the sight of her rocketing across the campus in her armor was downright scary. "Riko-chan, get everyone together! Egypt's going critical!"

00000

"_Mother Night_! What _is _it with this _planet _and _not following the rules_?!"

Reian almost laughed at Admiral Aignu's comment, but he was too junior and knew it. Still, the small part of his mind that was still functional through the shock and awe was duly impressed at her ability to sound so annoyed at a moment like this, when all he was conscious of was terror.

The null Reian and his fellows had been monitoring for the past seven months or so was no longer a flat and boring expanse of nothing. In the growing post-dawn light, tendrils of wild energy were flaring out of it, launching into the sky like a sick inversion of lightning. More energy raced and crackled along the null's edges, scorching the desert sand and lashing out about them. The off-duty circle mages had been woken up when the disturbance was first noticed, and now every functional mage at the site, Circle and Bureau alike, was struggling to maintain one or more of a multitude of shields around the camp's core structures and vehicles, sheltering them from the storm as best they could.

No one could get any closer to the null, and no one had paid it much attention before the ritual circles all collapsed. Even then, they had all been more concerned with the suddenly unconscious mages than a spot of nothingness from which no danger could threaten. Then they had felt the first shifts of energy, the fabric of reality warping and stretching around the null. By the time they realized it was coming from within the null, the dislocation had been in full fury, and all any of them could do was hunker down and try to protect themselves from the chaos. The dislocation was interfering with everything, teleports and telepathy included, even the locals' radios and generators.

Reian himself was in the front line, his device shivering in his hands, Admiral Aignu right behind him as part of the second line. Reian had gotten the first line simply because he was most comfortable with the locals, despite the distrust and outright suspicion. That made him the apex of the defense, holding the most exposed and toughest position, with Circle mages lined up to either side of him, just inside the layered shields. He was actually rather proud of that, because it _was _the toughest position in the defense, and he was doing rather well so far. On the down-side, the post gave him a front-row seat for whatever was happening, and at the moment things seemed to be heading down hill, for amidst all the wild energy and twisting chaos of a full-blown dimensional dislocation, something was moving in the null, coming _out _of the null, in blatant ignorance of every rule and law of magic Reian had ever learned.

Through the swirling mass of energies, Reian could make out structures, pushing slowly through the null into normal reality. They reminded him of tower-tops rising out of fog, save that these wavered and shifted even as they rose. Sometimes perfectly straight, sometimes fluctuating and wavering, sometimes growing or shrinking, sometimes shattering into discrete sections and portions that were separate but nonetheless the same.

More and more of them became visible all the time, and he realized they were arcing away from each other, as if whatever they were attached to was wider than the null and squeezing down to fit through it. But the mad dance of energy around the null was worsening as well, and long before the full structure came into view, he was forced to look away, unable to see through the churning madness of energies and the density of his own shields.

He had no idea of how long the strain and insanity lasted, but it felt like hours, days, before the cascade of energies battering at his shields finally ceased. They cut off abruptly, one moment a raging torrent, the next gone, and the cessation of effort snapped his tired control. He felt a moment's shame as his shield disintegrated and he fell to his knees, until he realized he was better off than most. The Circle mages were staggering to the ground and falling completely, half of them unconscious from the strain. He was so tired it took a while to realize that the harsh local sunlight was missing, and he looked up to see why. There was no trace of the null any longer, just a wide flat swath of desert, not even dunes to disturb its level surface. But above him, shading the entire region from the sun, was what he could only call a wonder.

Floating in the air almost a kilometer above was a cyclopean structure, spread wide over more area than the null had occupied. It was patently artificial, metal and plastics and glass everywhere. There was a central platform structure, but from that depended a wild mass of structures, small and large, sprawling and towering, seeming ready to fall to earth. He could see lights and motion, energy crackling along some of the structures, objects moving along the outer surface like vehicles. He called up the zoom on his scout-goggles, and spent a time scanning the huge construct. He thought he saw faces, people, in some of the windows, but the angle was bad and he could not be sure.

Until he reached the edge of the platform. There, just under the lip of the platform, he noticed a series of small domes randomly spaced around the perimeter, and focused on one. Maximum zoom brought it into sharp relief, and he felt his heart stop for a moment. The dome was transparent, apparently filled with some liquid in addition to its occupant – a quiescent Seed of Leviathan.

"Gods above," Reian said, scanning along the perimeter, "there are hundreds of them."

"Why pray to your gods, heretic," Hassed rasped, on his knees but back still ramrod straight as he stared upwards, "they're floating there above us. Go and talk to them yourself."

"Those aren't the gods!"

"No," Hassed spat, "they're demons. Look upon the city of Atlantis, heretic, source of all your power. Creation is doomed."

"Admiral," Commander Tessai, leader of Aignu's Field Mages, sounded tightly controlled. "Straight up, two degrees to my left, four degrees forward. The domed structure with three prongs arcing energy."

"What about it, Tessai?" Aignu sounded as tired as Reian felt.

"It's a Lost Logia, ma'am, Class Two restricted, highly dangerous. I was part of a team out towards Hykon sector a couple years ago that came across one. Some damn fool tried to use it as a power core. It blew up, full dislocation, killed over a hundred people, took us six months to fix it." Tessa paused, then continued, "And I can see another one, ma'am, about five degrees around the circle. Another further around, I'm guessing there's a full ring of them. Ma'am, if one of those goes..."

"The rest will," Aignu said, "and we can kiss the universe goodbye." She swore again, rather more colorfully, then told them, "I still can't get a signal out, can't teleport. We're under a barrier, a strong one."

A shiver of magic and motion drew Reian's attention upward, to find five men and women standing in the air. They carried no devices, but he could feel the magic around them, gathered and focused. One of them drifted lower, and Reian realized how the Circle strike force must have felt when he and his superiors returned from the Shiva after the Seed attack. There was nowhere to go, and, if the number of mages now floating away from the city overhead were any indication, fighting would be useless.

One of the five closest shouted something, but Reian could not make it out. It was obvious what they wanted, however. Aignu ordered, "Safe your devices, people. Don't surrender them, but don't use them. Fighting will only get us dead now, but we don't necessarily have to fight these people."

Hassed snarled at her, "We will never surrender..."

"Shut up," Aignu snapped, "I am not risking my people's lives for your vendetta. The Bureau will handle these people, and do it safely. You try anything, you're going to get dead, at best. At worst, you screw up here, even as weak as you are, and you could cause another Al Hazred disaster. Fight now and die, or exercise a little intelligent patience and get your boss some information he can use beyond 'the demons are back'? Your choice, but I'll fight you to keep my people safe, and you will lose."

Hassed almost attacked her for that, but Aignu managed to reach him, put a hand on his shoulder. "Major, don't. You aren't strong enough to make it worth the sacrifice, not now. Give it a few days. These people can't have any idea what we can do, we'll surprise them, even if the Bureau can't get us free. But I'm not ready to die here for no reason. Time will give us back our freedom. For now, we don't have a choice." She backed away from him, her device fading into its pendant form, and sat down heavily. "Safe your devices, people, lay down your guns, and be patient."

00000

CrimsonDX: yep, Cid-chan last chapter, Niranjana this chapter, and here's the 'something'. Still got some things to go before the reveal is totally finished, though. Thanks for the review!

Pfeil: Hughes was a last minute addition, mostly because it took me that long to figure out how he would handle both Hayate's response (Akira) and his own. The details with Didier were my own impressions of watching Cidela in action, though his reaction is representative. I keep finding myself overstating Cidela's problems with control, though – the scene last chapter took three tries, and then I had to trim it back to what was posted... Feel free to nitpick, I make no claims to perfection. Both errors you spotted have been corrected. As for the multiple characters, thank you for the compliment. Characters are what I have fun with, though I think I have too many at present. I need them, for the structure and symmetry, and for certain plot events later, but keeping them all fresh and distinct is proving difficult. Fun, though.

Kell Shock: Thanks for the correction, it's fixed! Hassed's 'source' is a little more complicated than true precognition, but here's what was giving him nightmares. Only question now is, why? His own prejudices, true expectations, someone else's reactions...? We'll see.

notcroaker: Things are starting to move, most of the setup is now down (took me long enough, I know:). Akira's response to the Dogs was rather carefully choreographed, like most of what he does, and all sorts of fun to write. Esien's call and the history of Atlantis and what they left behind are (obviously) going to be important parts. My idea of what happened to them is, in large part, responsible for the first scene of the prologue, with Atarsamain. Reian is very much supposed to be a 'junior officer' still learning the ropes and, like Yuno, has had to revise his Bureau-inspired opinion of the Circles. He and Admiral Aignu's crew still have a serious role to play.

Advent000: To some extent, you are right that the Dogs are not taking Hayate seriously, but they are reacting to her with a political, rather than personal, view. Politically, there was no real reason for her to interfere in their efforts to eliminate the Revenants, as the Revenants are more immediately dangerous to her. Unfortunately for them, Hayate tends to respond from a more personal viewpoint of keeping all her enemies under control.


	16. 15 Devil's Due

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-15 – Devil's Due-

Hayate had wanted to meet with her knights privately, in her office, to discuss the feed from the observation satellites. But the final pulse of magic out of Egypt had been powerful enough to wash across the entire world in the visible spectrum. Even if, by some miracle, her students had missed that, the fact that her phone would not stop ringing would have made discussion in her office impossible.

So instead, everyone on campus was once again crammed into the Library's common room, even the Kobayashis were present, holding hands in the back of the room as they tried to understand what had 'their little ones' so worried. Most of the first-years looked almost as confused, though they were patently less worried. It was the second-years that most impressed Hayate, and watching them as they absorbed the information on the screens and listened to their teachers debate that information, Hayate began to understand some of Fate's more cryptic comments about the students. 'Scary calm' indeed, especially Yussef, Noriko and Laura.

The worst reaction, by far, was Tai-yu. The somewhat nervous, highly disciplined, occasionally contrary woman had taken one look at what was hovering over Egypt, and passed out in a screaming faint. Ever since coming to, she had been sitting at a table, staring at nothing, muttering to herself in Cantonese and Spanish. Shamal was with her, trying to break her out of her trance, but it was taking a while.

"Hayate-sama, they've got some sort of barrier up, but it's not affecting visuals too badly. The orbitals can compensate, at least. I can see hundreds of lost logia in that thing, and that's just the big stuff on the surface," Vita complained. Then she blinked at a chime, leaned forward into the terminal she was using to detail scan the city, "Oh, crap, look at this!" She flashed up a new main-screen, focused on one of the vehicles that seemed to hover about the floating city, showing its forward slope. "See that glint? Just inside the windshield?" The focus tightened again, and a hazy diamond-shaped blue glow appeared, "That's a jewel seed! A _jewel seed_! And those lunatics are using to power a _mini-van_!"

"It's not a mini-van," Signum corrected her, "it's some sort of levitated cargo or mass transit vehicle. But that is a lost logia, and the frightening part is, it's hardly the most dangerous we've seen since that... city... popped up. What is wrong with those people that they would use those things so profligately?"

"It is Atlantis," Tai-yu rasped without looking away from her table-top. "The Lords of Light have returned, with their city and their heresy."

"All due respect, sensei," Yussef said, "I don't think it really matters who they are. Al Hazred, Atlantis, some collection of crooks that found a bigger relic than usual... they have the gear and apparently know how to use it. What's a problem now is, like it was last year before the Circles attacked, is what are they going to do with it? I guess why are they trying to do it _here_ would be good to know, but really we just need to know 'what'. If they're going to cause trouble, we need to counter that. If they're just passing through, or some sort of refugees, we should see about making room for them somewhere. Without that knowledge, we can't do anything."

"Actually, the problem last year was figuring out who the Circles were," Hayate reminded him. "Had we ever known that, we could have dealt with them directly and cleanly, instead of getting attacked. But you are right, here. Who they are is less important than what they want and what they are willing to do to get it. Still, given their obvious use of banned magic, I am inclined to be very cautious. I need to speak to Hughes first, but I am going to talk to them. They may be, as Yussef mentioned, refugees. They may have found some way to traverse time, or been cast through time in the Al Hazred or Terran cataclysms. Or they could be pirates, hoping to use an artifact of such power to conquer themselves a world the Bureau might be hesitant to touch. So I will speak with them, and find out. Signum, Zafira, you will go with me, and I will try to get Takashi as well, if he can be pried away from this 'project' of his. Are there any other questions?"

Laura raised her hand, "Got one for you, Hayate-sensei. Any objection to more 'special classes' like Yu-chan's? These yahoos are making me nervous, especially since the Circles are going to go ape-shi… sorry, _insane_ over this. All us second years could use some toughening up, and I've got an idea. Sort of like Yu-chan's little club, but without their focus on despotism and tyranny and communism and the like."

"It's a class in tactics and teamwork, Laura," Yussef said, "not politics."

She waved calmingly, "Sure, sure, sorry, didn't mean to mess up your propaganda or anything. But, would you mind, Hayate-sensei?"

Hayate thought it over for a moment. The idea of Laura offering such a course was problematic, mostly due to the girl's energy levels. On the one hand, Laura could very easily go over-board with the class, and was very much a lone-wolf personality. On the other hand, she had shown in the twins and in assisting her classmates with their devices that she was capable of tutoring, at the least. The problem would be keeping her focused on the task, and not turning the class into 'prank central' or worse. "You'll have to present a lesson plan and the like," Hayate decided, "subject to Signum's and my approval. Agreed?"

Laura bowed, but the formal gesture was ruined by her smirk, "Sure thing, Hayate-sensei! Noriko, Allison, Juliet, Megan, Saeryn, Rhys, Kaemon. Meet me in the second study room upstairs once we wrap up here."

Hayate cocked her head as she contemplated the lack of nicknames, but let it slide. Laura's plans were secondary, at the moment, and Signum was no doubt keeping a close eye on her. "Vita, Zafira, please continue scanning the city, find out everything you can. Shamal, Lieze, Aria, please see about getting at least some of the afternoon classes going today? Signum, put together a plan to contact our new neighbors and how to go about making sure we can leave after our visit is over. I'm going to contact Hughes."

Heading back upstairs, she could hear her phone ringing even through her office door, and gave a more exasperated sigh. Then she turned around and headed back down stairs and out the front door. The answering service she had hired after February did well enough, but too many people had the direct line to her office that bypassed that service, and there was no way to forward that line to the service – a mistake she had just made a note to fix. So she side-stepped that issue and went up to the house, to use the private line.

That phone was ringing as well, but Hayate let it roll over to the answering machine. Noriko's parents could wait a little longer, important as they were. Once the ringer went silent, she picked up the line and dialed Hughes' number from memory. It was a little sad that she could do that, but it did make things simpler.

Hughes picked up on the third ring, "Good evening, Hayate."

He sounded harried and tired, so she did not ask how he knew it was her. Who else would be calling him from Japan at this hour, after all? "Good afternoon, Gareth. You're aware of Egypt, from the sound of it?"

"I have a flight in to Washington in half an hour," he told her. "I have the dubious distinction of telling my president that I have no god-damn clue what to do about this."

"Tai-yu is certain this is Atlantis. How sure of that are you?"

"One hundred percent. Everything about that abomination... I don't like what you do, Hayate, but Jesus you are worlds away better than those monsters. I'm guessing you're calling to tell me not to do anything?"

"I'm going to ask for that," Hayate said, "but not command, not in this case. At the very least, your people cannot afford to stumble blindly into battle. Your legends of Atlantis are not enough to plan strategy and tactics around. Give me a few days, and the Bureau will arrive in force. They cannot allow something like this to stand. For now, I am going to talk to them, to see if I can find out who they are and what they want. It may be possible to simply talk to them, you know. As it would have been possible to simply talk to me, last year."

Hughes chuckled darkly at that, "sure it could be. And if you believe that, I've got some bottom land in Florida to sell you."

"It is a possibility," Hayate insisted. "Just because your ancestors, as the victors, wrote horrible things about their monstrous warmongering enemies does not mean they were warmongering monsters. Look at documented Terran history, say the last thousand years. Your country used to say rather terrible things about the Native Americans, amplifying a few incidents into stereotyping. It is endemic to the human condition for the winners to vilify the losers. I am not prepared to do that. Especially not when the 'losers' in this case have the potential to destroy all of creation in a fit of pique. I've told you of El Hazred. This new city has enough Lost Logia in use to rival that catastrophe. It would make the cataclysm that ended the Circle-Atlantis war look like a galactic hick-up."

"I wasn't arguing against the attempt," Hughes said, "remember, last year I wanted to leave you completely alone until we knew everything about you. To be honest, I would not object to you finding some way to talk us out of this. My people might be ready to take you on in a couple years. Take on these monsters? Not for decades, yet."

"Give me some time, then," Hayate said.

"Have to do that, anyhow," Hughes chuckled, "nothing's ready to move, and even the Black Dogs aren't that quick off the mark. Go have your chat. When you get back, I would appreciate it if would share whatever you learn."

"I will do that," Hayate agreed. "Probably late tomorrow. Safe flight, Gareth."

"Good luck, Hayate."

00000

"Okay, look," Laura said as she flipped the door closed, "I've been working on something since just after we got back after the summer. Since I snagged my minions, actually. They gave me an idea for something. You all know about Yu-chan's Myrmidons, right?"

"Kind of hard not to," Kaemon muttered. "They sound pretty cool."

"Yeah, yeah, they're real cool," Laura said, "if you don't mind him setting himself up as a little tin-pot dictator warlord type. If you want to be a good little trooper and follow Yu-chan's orders and march around in lockstep with the jackboots, you go right ahead and think his Myrmidons are cool."

Allison thumped into a chair, "Cut it out, Laura. He's never been like that, and neither are his boys. You just don't like the fact that he's got people following him and you don't."

Laura grimaced, "Yeah, a little. But not enough to do anything about it, not on just that basis. I mean, followers are such a pain. You've gotta feed 'em and clothe 'em and wipe their bottoms... far more trouble than they're worth."

Juliet rolled her eyes, "So what are you bothering us for?"

"I think it has something to do with her attempts to avoid Signum-sensei's offer," Noriko said. "Something about avoiding the Wolkenritter by becoming something else?"

Laura's smile faded into a more serious frown. "Yeah, something else. Here's the thing. Whether it's the Circles, some sort of Terran problems, or these new kids, or some of the less pleasant people out there that the Bureau deals with, whatever it is, eventually we're going to get into a ruckus. Like February, but probably not that easy. People know about us now, at least somewhat, and they'll be better prepared."

"So you're thinking of turning us into another group of Myrmidons?" Allison shook her head, "No thanks. I wasn't interested last year, I'm not interested this year. Yussef's good, but he has no idea how I fight. If I get jumped, I don't want to be hamstringed by trying to be someone else."

"Don't jump to conclusions," Laura said. "Yussef's methods won't really work for any of us. We're too individual, too different in our magic and our focus. What will work for us is what Sensei did with me last year – individual training to perfect our abilities. Thing is, Sensei doesn't have time to give all of us the same attention she gave me last year. Just dealing with Saeryn, Rhys, and Kaemon has seriously cut into how much time she spends exercising with me. So we have to do that training ourselves. We work together, with magic and martial arts, and train each other to be the best we possibly can be.

"Yussef talks a lot about teaching his boys to watch each others' backs, about how you'll never face just one of them. I say Hell with that, I'm going to be good enough that I don't _need _anyone to watch my back. I'm going to be good enough that I don't _need _reinforcements. I'm going to be good enough to be _perfect_. Or at least, that's what I'm going to strive for, right up until the day I die, if that's tomorrow or a hundred years from now. That's what I'm suggesting all of you do, with me. We set it up on a schedule, in the main workroom and the flight-training room. We work at our spells, our bodies, and combinations of the two until we're perfect at them, until we're as good as Tai-yu-sensei is with her magic, as good as Sensei with martial arts, and until we can stand alone against any two or three of Yussef's Myrmidons."

Her audience was silent for a few moments, almost a minute. They traded looks, thought it over, pondered the suggestion. It looked to Laura like they were going to go for it, which would buy her a couple weeks before she had to have the rest of it figured out. Then Noriko went and asked the one question Laura had been hoping to avoid. "This is a lovely idea and all, Laura, but I can't help asking why? This isn't the sort of thing you would usually come up with, it's more my style. I'm right that this has to do with dodging Signum-sensei's offer, aren't I?"

Laura glared at her for a second, but could not really mean it, so she sighed, slumped into a free seat, and admitted, "Yeah, it does. Happy now?"

Noriko smiled, "Mostly curious. Do tell, please."

Laura grumbled under her breath for a second, then did as she was told. "It's like this. Sensei's being really pushy about that offer she made last year. I don't like it, though. I mean, how does a teenager like me fit in with a bunch of centuries-old war-gods like them?"

"Hayate-sensei manages it," Saeryn commented, then blinked at the shocked looks the others directed at her. "What?"

"Uh, Wrack, hellloooo?" Laura waved before pronouncing, "She's _Hayate-sensei_! That's how!"

"No need to be rude about it," Saeryn said.

Laura huffed, then waved the matter aside, "Look, it wouldn't work. I don't think it's that Sensei won't take 'no' for an answer, she just... doesn't get why. She also doesn't like the idea of me running around loose, I think. Then there's this issue I noticed over the summer. Once we're out of here, once we graduate, what are we going to do about going further? I mean, over the summer I came up with millions of spell ideas, even worked out a couple of them. Couldn't do anything to test them, 'cept for Molly Breaker, until I got back here. I couldn't even talk about them with anyone, because who in Rhode Island was gonna understand half what I was talking about?"

"We don't understand half what you're talking about," Juliett muttered.

"You understand more than my old friends do," Laura countered. "You understand more than my parents or cousins and so on. Look, think back over just this year so far. How much more have we learned, than over the summer? Part of that's school, yeah, but part of it's just the fact that we can bounce ideas off each other, test new spells, all that jazz. Once we graduate, who are we going to do that with? Huh? Each other? Sure, but how? What I'm planning is, instead of this being a 'class' that we all go to once a week and dutifully throw some spells around and then head off to do homework or watch TV or something, we go whole hog.

"Yussef has his Myrmidons, and we all know those punks are going to be tight for decades. We'll do the same. He's always going on about how his boys'll watch each others' backs, we won't rely on each other, but we'll still be there if one of us needs help. We teach each other tricks, help each other develop spells, train each other as hard as Sensei trains me. And we keep doing it, this year, next year, the year after, after we graduate. Once you're in, you're in for as long as you can. Not 'no leaving on pain of really horrible death' or anything, but you get the idea. The class I suggested to Hayate-sensei is the first step, but we could set up separate sessions with each other, whole class or just pairs or whatever. We'll be unstoppable, we'll be the best, we can..."

Noriko held up a calming hand, and Laura stumbled to a halt. "That actually sounds rather interesting, Laura. Short on details, but interesting."

"Yeah, well, I'm still working on it," Laura grumbled, "But the new kids screwed things up."

Kaemon took that personally, "What did we do?"

"Not you," Noriko assured him, "the people in Egypt. I think they're making Laura as nervous as they are making me."

"Probably more," Laura said, "but you're handicapped by your lack of imagination, so I'll forgive you."

"Hush," Noriko ordered. "As I said, the idea is basically sound, and would enable those of us who don't fit in Yussef's Myrmidons to have a similar support structure. But we will have to work out the rest of those details."

"I've got some of them," Laura said, "especially if we're serious about keeping this thing going beyond graduation. The thing I keep running into is, if this works even half right, we're going to be seriously powerful. Scary powerful. Like, think how scared you guys are of me, right? I know you are, even if you never admit it. You'll all be almost as scary, when we graduate. That's not necessarily a bad thing, I mean everyone's afraid the US, right? And 'cause of that, the world's been a lot more peaceful than it was."

"That's debatable," Allison said. "The US..."

Laura cut her off with a shouted, "Beside the point!" She waved it away again, "you get the idea! We'll be powerful enough to make a difference, but powerful enough people are going to be terrified of what we may do with it. So I'm trying to think of something we could do to sort of build in safeguards that won't be fatal limits or too static to last."

"There's Signum's open membership requirement, too," Juliet reminded her, "like Yussef's Myrmidons. She made him come up with criteria to join, so it won't be just a couple of them forming an 'old boys network'. She'll demand the same of you for this."

Laura nodded, "Yeah, but I don't want this to be exclusive. Only reason I named all of you is I figure you're the ones most likely to go along. Even willing to let some of Yu-chan's boys in, though maybe not his Highnessness himself."

"Share," Noriko suggested, "perhaps we can see what you cannot, for both issues."

Laura blinked at her, then looked at the others. Most of them just sort of nodded, but Allison actually spoke. "Ah, what the hell. I'm going to need some sort of practice with Gallóglaigh once it's built. I'm in."

"Well, cool," Laura muttered, then dropped her elbows on the table. "Here's what I've got so far. We need..."

00000

Arranging a meeting with the newcomers proved both more and less difficult than Hayate expected. Signum managed to locate a communications beacon in the city that was worrisomely compatible with Bureau-issue gear, but speaking with them proved impossible. Until Natalia overheard one of their replies.

Fortunately for Hayate's peace of mind, Natalia did not say anything in response to that, but let Signum know. Once Signum had muted the microphone and waved her over, Natalia explained, "They're speaking Al Hazred, sensei. This sounds like an automated challenge, though, not a person. There's something – stilted – about it. Aria-sensei should be able to speak with them."

Signum raised one eyebrow. "Not you?"

Natalia shook her head, "Not me, sensei. I'm just a student, remember? Also... Hayate-sensei is nervous enough about me as it is. I don't want her thinking I'm getting strange ideas again. Aria-sensei should be able to handle it, or Ichigo if she's not available."

"Aria is on her way," Signum replied. "I'd like you to stay and handle the communications, with her as back-up. Call it a test of your language abilities."

So Natalia and Aria managed to arrange a diplomatic meeting that afternoon, Egypt time. That gave them almost enough time to iron out the security wrinkles from their end. Signum was all for bringing the entire compliment of teachers. Vita wanted to bring Noriko, Laura, and Yussef as well. Tai-yu suggested bringing the entire US military and turning it into a preemptive strike. Convincing them to let her go with just Aria, Lotte and Signum took Hayate until shortly before it was time to depart, and even then she was half-convinced that Vita and Zafira would attempt to follow anyhow.

Per the arrangements, Signum teleported the four of them into open air several kilometers from the floating city. From this distance, the structure truly looked its size, hovering silently in the open air over the now pan-flat desert, with no trace of the null from which it had come. There was a faint shimmer in the air, indicative of a powerful barrier that appeared to surround the city in an ellipsoid sphere, stopping just above the desert floor. There was also a cloud of objects floating around the city, little moving specks of darkness that, as they closed, resolved into people, flying about the city near the edge of the barrier.

A few of those people were quite obviously guards or soldiers. They wore gray and white uniforms, and remained mostly stationary, apparently more concerned with keeping everyone else close to the city than with watching for external threats. The vast majority of the floating crowd, spread out around the city, were quite obviously civilians. They were dressed in a riot of colors and styles, all brightly clothed, and most of them were simply staring outwards in apparent wonder, talking excitedly amongst themselves as they flitted about to different areas around the city. It almost looked like an impromptu street festival.

As the four of them approached the barrier, a line of blue flicked out from the edge of the city, terminating at the barrier a little below their line of approach. It split into four, the beams spreading out and beginning to rotate around their origin point, tracing a circle on the barrier about ten meters across. The beams left a circular trail behind them, and the barrier's haze faded to clarity, just before two figures in the gray-on-white uniforms moved out through it.

The two approached slowly, and Hayate held out a hand to stop her own party in place. She wanted to be sure these were the welcoming committee, before getting too close to that barrier to escape it. Neither of the two looked particularly old, appearing about Hayate's age, and neither had any sort of obvious device on them. They also looked alike enough to be cousins, slight builds with dark hair and pale skin, dark eyes with a slight slant, and some sort of cybernetics above their right eyes, strips of metal set with lights and tiny lenses.

They stopped a short distance away, and said something in a rapid-fire almost stuttering language. Hayate recognized it as Al Hazred, buried memories of Sara's implanted by Hypatia and Beaudica stirring, but she could not quite follow it. Aria supplied a translation, _'They are Journeyman Turo and Journeyman Nephan, of something called 'the Protectors'. They are here to escort us to the Lord Protector and General of the Guard.'_

"Very well," Hayate said, gesturing towards the hole in the barrier, "lead on."

Aria relayed, and the two nodded. The one who had spoken started back towards the barrier, while the second waved them forward, falling in behind to bracket them. Lotte took to watching the one behind, Signum and Aria scanning more generally, while Hayate focused on following the guide. He passed through the opening in the barrier, then traveled down the cone towards the city perimeter. At the bottom of the cone a quartet of large emitters were mounted on a motorized ring, spinning about the open space, set atop the perimeter of the city. Even passing through the barrier, Hayate felt her magic, her altered linker core, reacting to something, to a pervasive sort of dimensional disturbance.

Following the young man through the ring, Hayate noted that while a few people were following their flight, or watching, most still seemed utterly absorbed in the view of southern Egyptian desert. The guide completely ignored their audience, flying towards the center of the city and upwards, aiming for an upper level of one of the central towers. Intentionally or not, he gave Hayate quite the overview of the city, with a clarity her monitoring satellites had not been able to provide.

That overview was, in many ways, far more worrisome. The first thing she noticed was the sheer number of people. For every person flying around the city, she estimated there were ten to twenty more not airborne, walking around on the 'platform' level, or on one of innumerable garden ledges spreading from the tops and sides of the towers, giving her a population estimate well north of 'millions'. Almost everywhere she looked there were Lost Logia, not only present, but in use, in _common _use, and utterly unremarked upon. Her own memories, those Sarah left her, and Reinforce's perusal of Sarah's notes in the Sword's library, cataloged what she was seeing, listing banned technology after disastrous mistake after dangerous configuration, all apparently as common and unnoticed here as an electric wall socket in an office building.

Further study was interrupted by Reinforce. _'Mistress, I believe I have located Admiral Aignu and her people. They are being held on a lower level of the tower we are approaching.'_

_'Any sign you have been noticed?'_

_'None, Mistress,'_ Reinforce replied. _'The Sword is doing an excellent job camouflaging my probes. Between us, we should be undetected. Should I attempt to retrieve the Admiral?'_

_'Be ready to,'_ Hayate thought slowly, _'but do not do anything yet. I do not want to take any aggressive steps until I must. Keep looking, though. Be as sure as you can that you have everyone.'_

_'Circle mages included?'_

_'If you can find them, yes,'_ Hayate said. _'They have as much right to leave as any Bureau personnel.'_

Their guide leveled off, then descended slightly to land on a park-ledge the size of Hayate's classroom building. The ledge itself was beautifully arranged, five trees placed almost-randomly, boxes covered in red and blue flowers along the perimeter, and grass covering most of the open space. A small patio was set into the grass in front of a double-door, just enough to clearly mark the entrance without upsetting the carefully cultivated 'natural' appearance. Seven people were waiting there, two in the gray-on-white of their guide, six in a red-on-black uniform that was obviously meant to be intimidating.

Hayate paused where their guide landed, letting the others land and set themselves, taking the opportunity to study the figures before her. Two stood out, moving closer at the lead of their respective groups, and she focused on them. The woman in red-on-black moved with an arrogant confidence, Hayate's height but whippet thin, with a shock of white hair spiked just a little. Like the guide, she had a cybernetic strip over her right eye, but also more on her bare left arm, and another strip along her left jaw. Everything about her, from the sharp set of her face to her long stride told Hayate that this woman was a soldier, a fighter, Signum without the decorum.

The other leader was almost her polar opposite. He was taller than Signum, broad without being stocky, and his black hair was shot through with gray, giving him a distinguished, more thoughtful air. That impression was borne out by the set of his eyes, the guarded but polite smile. Like the woman, he had more cybernetics, almost a precise match for hers varying only in the set of the gems or lenses or whatever-they-were. His stance and posture were also different, less arrogant, more relaxed, but just as confident. Both of them wore metallic markings on their clothes, placed so as to remind Hayate of military insignia. The only symbol they shared was an Al Hazred character on the left collar.

Hayate let them come to her, and gave them a slight but polite bow. The woman performed some sort of salute – her left hand, clenched into a fist, snapped out forward and down, then rose to rest over her heart as she bowed her head. The man, to Hayate's surprise, matched her bow precisely. The woman said something in their language, and Aria translated telepathically, _'She introduces herself as 'General Szash Freisan', commander of the... Homeworld Guard? There is more, some family information I think, possibly political affiliations. The shadings are... not what I learned.'_

_'It's clear enough, Aria. Thank you.'_ Hayate almost spoke herself, but the man spoke first, and Hayate carefully noted that Szash shot him a quick, sharp glance. _No love lost there, I believe._

_'He is Lord Protector Yosho Elasesh. Again, family or political affiliations. His words are... more formal, more polite, than the General's.'_

Hayate nodded when he ceased speaking, and introduced herself. She was gesturing to Aria to indicate the familiar was her translator, when Yosho held up a hand, and said in accented Japanese, "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Yagami-san. If it would be simpler, perhaps we could carry on in your language? Your comrades who were here when we pulled through the anomaly provided it for us." Szash snapped at him, but he merely shook his head, "no reason not to be polite, Szash. This is obviously not the world we left, as I warned everyone."

"If it would not be too much trouble, this should go much simpler with fewer translators," Hayate said. "The more translations involved, the greater the chance for misunderstandings, after all."

Szash muttered something else, then shrugged and smiled, "I suppose it won't hurt to indulge you. You'll learn a real language soon enough, after all."

"Szash," Yosho chided. "That was unnecessary, and far from certain."

Yosho's comment aside, Hayate did not care for the implications of Szash's comment. "Why would be learning your language 'soon enough'?"

"The Masters are debating, even as we speak, on the proper course for us to take," Yosho answered. "We have spent over fifty years trapped beyond reality, in the nothing between dimensions. Now, we are free once more, and demonstrably on Homeworld, but where we go from here is in question. Admittedly, our exit from the void was precipitous and hasty, but we are not so foolish as to make a move without information."

"That is good to hear," Hayate said, "I was hoping for such a reasonable response. You said you have been 'away' for fifty years. For us it has been many thousands of years. Entire nations have risen and fallen since your city was lost, not just here but throughout the universe. For instance, looking about your city, I can see any number of what we call 'Lost Logia'. They have proven for generations to be hideously dangerous, unpredictable at best and monstrously destructive at worst."

Szash snorted, "Of course you think they're dangerous. You patently have no concept of how magic works, how to bend it to your will. A babe in arms would have as much chance of understanding our technology as you!"

Hayate felt a spike of irritated insult at that, an irrational temptation to show the other woman precisely what she did understand of magic. But the instability of her own magic and the fact that she knew nothing of these people's magic kept her reason in firm control. "We understand well enough," she said, "you have however many years of your people's history in one city. I have thousands of years of records covering the entire universe. You may know how to safely use this technology, which I doubt given the history involved, but we have seen nothing but disaster and danger from it."

"Tche, 'history involved'," Szash snorted, "primitivists like you sabotaged one of the generators, even if you did not manage here as well as you did at Al Hazred colony. We have done nothing wrong, save defend ourselves from fanatics who would rather destroy the entirety of creation than admit that they are wrong."

Yosho cleared his throat, "We are not here to debate history, Szash, especially not history you are too young to remember." Szash sneered at him, but he held up a hand, and continued in their native tongue for a minute.

_'He is commenting on her age,'_ Aria told Hayate, _'She was apparently a child or teenager when the city was lost. He claims to have been alive at the time of the Al Hazred disaster. There is something about that, as well. The tone and meanings are not quite right, but I think they viewed Al Hazred as... as a major colony?'_

"Lord Protector, General, if we may," Hayate interrupted. "I realize you have requirements for yourselves and your city, but you need to recognize that the nations which have grown up here on Earth also have their needs. Then there are the Circles, descendants, I believe, of the 'rebels' you fought. They recognize your city, and keeping them from precipitous action will be difficult. We will all need to be very cautious to keep your return from becoming violent."

"True," Yosho agreed, "however your hopes for non-violence are probably in vain. The rebels have never been rational, and I doubt their descendants are any better, however long it is has been. That being said, we do need to know what we are faced with, before we can make any decisions. Would you be willing to give us some of that information, in exchange for our own requirements?"

Hayate had suggested a one-hour time-frame for the meeting, simply to establish contact and verify who she was dealing with. In the end, though, the three of them wound up spending closer to four explaining and debating. Unfortunately for Hayate's peace of mind, Szash's statements and Yosho's built two conflicting pictures. Yosho seemed calm and reasonable, apparently accepting the different time-frames with ease and understanding his own limits. Szash was rather the opposite, ignoring any suggestion that Terra's current nations had any right to exist, or the power to defend themselves. Reconciling those two impressions left a distasteful thought that one or both of them was attempting to manipulate her, to mislead her.

She did manage to learn a great deal about them, however. They claimed to truly be the Atlanteans the Circles so hated, but laid the entire blame for that conflict on the Circles. According to Szash and Yosho, a few fanatics so determined to return to a 'natural state' they hated all technology, magical or otherwise, destroyed the Al Hazred colony in a fit of terrorist pique, using methods deliberately engineered to cause maximum universe-wide destruction. The cataclysm so deliberately unleashed was then used as an excuse by the terrorists' fellows to demand an end to all such technology, and the damage was frightening enough to the common people that entire colonies abandoned varying levels of technology and in some extreme cases, abandoned all magic entirely. The 'madness' then spread to Homeworld, and a bloody vicious civil war erupted, until only the science city of Al Hanthis remained, purged of any rebels and sheltered behind its unique defenses. Reading between the lines, comparing their version with the Bureau's reconstructed history and the Circle's less-than-impartial legends, Hayate found herself believing something of a middle-ground. Civil wars were never as cut and dried as Yosho and Szash were claiming.

But the two did manage to make it abundantly clear that they and their people claimed Terra as theirs, and saw no reason to give up that claim of planet-wide rule. They made many claims of 'leaving existing structures in place', but made just as many claims of 'better ways'. Hayate tried to tell herself that this was a preliminary meeting, laying out positions, but the way the two different approaches the Al Hanthis representatives used meshed on the key points gave her little hope. In the end, she was left with the conviction that only direct Bureau intervention would stave off a disaster.

It was only as the sun began to descend that Yosho finally called a halt to the meeting. Szash simply stopped talking, and walked away, pulling her Guard subordinates after her with a gesture. Yosho was more polite. "I want to thank you for coming here, Yagami-san. I know we did not tell you what you hoped, but please believe me, we are no more eager for violence or misunderstanding than you are. Unfortunately, we have spent decades in the void, and decades before that fighting a bloody war against heartless fanatics. We must see to the safety of our people."

"I understand," Hayate told him, and she truly did. She had faced the same decision time and again. "But most people here on Earth will feel the same about their peoples, their nations. Please, do not stop talking with me, with the Bureau. None of us want bloodshed, but given your history and the Circles', that is all too probable."

"I can make no promises," Yosho said, "but we have no desire for bloodshed either. On the other hand, as a gesture of good will..." he held out one hand, and the double-doors Szash was heading for vanished into the wall. Szash came up short, and Hayate could not restrain a surprised gasp, as standing on the other side of it was Admiral Aignu, and her personnel. "I am afraid we found a number of mages within our perimeter when the city came through the anomaly. While technically, they are rebels and thus should be imprisoned until trial, I see no reason to do so. As they and you have both told us, it has been a very long time since the war, and I do not care to hold children responsible for the crimes of their grandparents. We can provide transport for them, if you wish."

"Yosho!" Szash shout cut across the clearing, as her hand cut across Aignu's approach, energy crackling along her sleeve. She shouted something else in Al Hazred.

_'Szash objects to this, rather strenuously,'_ Aria translated. As Yosho answered with a calmer tone. _'He insists that, as they were taken within the city perimeter, that makes them the Protector's responsibility. I get the impression the Protectors are the police, while the Guard is the army, the first responsible for internal threats, the second for external threats.'_

_'Remember and review that, please,'_ Hayate responded. _'If there is a conflict there, we may need to use it.'_

_'Yes, Mistress,'_ Aria said, _'Yosho appears to be winning. The Admiral is coming. There are Circle mages with her as well.'_

Aignu was utterly silent as she approached, ignoring everyone around her, and most of her crew matched that stoic demeanor. Most of the Circle mages tried to, but lacked her crew's unified training and confidence. The Terran mages were obviously too horrified by where they were to display anything but that horror. Most of Hayate's attention was on Aignu, until the Admiral made a slight gesture, and Hayate noticed the card slid into her belt – her dormant device, still on her person.

"Thank you, Lord Protector," Hayate said as the prisoners approached. "I understand and appreciate what you are doing here. We were worried about them."

"Call it a gesture of good will, Yagami-san," Yosho answered. "Will you require assistance to transport them? There are quite a few."

"No, I can handle it." Drawing the Sword, Hayate waited until she was sure everyone that was coming was out of the tower. _'Reinforce, you are going to have company soon. Please make sure no one gets into anything they should not.'_ Focusing on the Circle and Bureau mages, Hayate folded reality around them, "Arc of Angels."

The wash of light that covered the Bureau and Circle mages drew gasps and cries of surprise from the Al Hanthis personnel, and by the time it cleared, all of them, including Yosho, were on guard, energies gathered into half-formed spells, most of them aimed at her. From the expressions on most of their faces they were more shocked than afraid, though Hayate could not tell if they were offended by what she had done, or unable to believe how she had done it.

"Yagami-san," Yosho said slowly, "what did you just do to them? I thought they were your people."

"Some of them," Hayate agreed, "Certainly they are all my responsibility. I placed them in a pocket dimension, someplace they can be safely transported until I return them home."

"You did not destroy them?"

Hayate caught her breath, shocked herself at such a suggestion, "Of course not! It was a simple dimensional transfer spell!"

Yosho looked doubtful, visibly composed himself, then asked, "I mean no offense, Yagami-san, but in the future, could you please refrain from using... whatever that was? Despite what you think of us, we do not tear holes in reality as lightly as you just did."

Hayate blinked at him, then smiled slightly. "I did not 'rip a hole', Lord Protector, merely folded it somewhat. I admit it is a fine distinction, but my magic is somewhat unique. Your city is safe from my magic. Now, Journeyman Turo, would you be so kind as to show us out?"

Turo waited until Yosho relayed the instructions, then matched Szash's salute, before taking to the air and waiting politely for Hayate and her people to lift off. Then he lead them back to the same place they entered by, back through the ring and the opening in the barrier. This time, however, there were quite a few more people watching their departure, apparently attracted by Hayate's spell. Interest in the outsiders held the crowd's attention better than interest in their new vista, and Hayate's neck crawled at the attention. So many mages of such strength, with controllable lost logia behind them, presented a terrifying danger, even if every one of them was as peaceful as the most devout Buddhist.

As soon as they were clear of the city's barriers, Hayate wrapped her entire group up in a teleport, coming out over Cairo. Spiraling down, she told Signum, "We'll drop off the Circle mages at their building here, then bring the Admiral and her people to the campus. I need to talk to Chrono-kun soonest, and he'll want to hear what she has to say. I hope he has ships available, this is going to take more than just Fate-chan and the _Asura_."

00000

Kriegsen walked out of the briefing thinking furiously. Whoever they were, 'Atlanteans' or not, these new players were obviously powerful, obviously skilled mages. Despite the signs, he could not help wondering, _Are they skilled enough? The bastard has slipped through my fingers time and again. These damn locals are useless, especially with that spineless worm, Hughes, in charge. Could these newcomers be the ones I need?_

The problem was manifold, complicated, but he was used to that. Takashi was here, on this world, however difficult he was to track down. Kriegsen could not leave until the monster was dealt with once and for all, or he would inflict even more damage on the world, like that mess in Egypt. Beyond that, the problems were mostly a matter of discovery. If the Bureau discovered Kriegsen's presence, they would never stop hounding him. They had completely bought into Takashi's twisted version of events, completely ignoring Kriegsen's long and exemplary history and his manifest justifications. The local primitives were less of a threat, mostly because they had already proven completely unable to handle a real mage. Still, if they discovered him, they would force him out of hiding and probably bring the Bureau down on him. If Takashi or his new girl-toy found him, Kriegsen was fairly certain the two of them would try to kill him, and however little he thought of the girl-toy, Kriegsen was not stupid enough to face Takashi in open battle. The barbarian was good at battle, even if he was useless at everything else.

Kriegsen was used to complicated problems, though. He was a TSAB Admiral, after all, and he had been very good at his job, at every level. _If I could be sure of getting the bastard,_ Kriegsen mused, _I would be willing to go down with him. Hell, I was planning on it, at Alin Sydra and on the __Novus Deva__. But he's too slippery. I have to maintain my freedom of action. But anything overt will bring the Bureau's interference, before I can be certain the bastard is dead. That's what the primitives were for, but they're taking too long. He'll manipulate them as he did the Bureau, and given how backwards they are, he won't have to use nearly as much effort. But if these newcomers can be convinced to handle him... they should have more than enough power, if they truly control all those lost logia. It should be simplicity itself to convince them the bastard is an enemy, he certainly won't like any interlopers in his private playground which should give them ample reason to aid me. The trick will be keeping the Bureau out of things long enough. Much as I agree they should seize the newcomers' artifacts before something explodes, that can wait. So... is it worth giving up Triann?_

That was an easy enough question to answer. Making sure there was no one hanging around close enough to overhear, He pulled out a local cell-phone, and dialed a pre-arranged number. Setting up a patch from the local comm network to Takashi's girl's relays had been difficult, especially setting up one that would keep itself hidden at the far end. But it had already proven useful last year, though that useless hack Gelcide had been a terrible disappointment, even more so than the local primitives.

The automated system picked up the other line, "Who are you trying to contact, please?"

Kriegsen debated one last time, then said, "Second Admiral Durio Triann, Diplomatic Corp."

"One moment, please."

A few seconds later, a human being picked up the other end, "Triann here, what can I do for you?"

"Hello, Durio. This is Wilhelm."

Durio was silent for a few seconds, and Kriegsen could almost hear the debate. Bureau rules would require Durio to report this contact immediately. But at the same time, Durio was a long time comrade and friend, and then there was the reason Wilhelm was calling him, as opposed to someone else. "What do you want, Wilhelm?"

"You owe me," Wilhelm reminded him, just to make it clear, "and I'm calling to collect.

"Gods, Wilhelm," Durio groaned, "you're insane! When he found out you were missing, Hallaoun threatened to murder whoever was hiding you. You do not want to know what he promised to do to _you_! Your actions, your escape, embarrassed all of us, and there isn't an officer alive who doesn't daydream about dragging you back in chains. Me included! Your little vendetta cost the Bureau greatly with the member worlds, set back our prestige and our ability to do our jobs by decades! And now you want _me _to do you a _favor_?"

"I'm well aware of my strategic situation," Wilhelm replied, "which does not change the fact that you owe me, Durio. Look at that picture on your wall, I know it's still there, it's too big to be moved. Your wife, your kids. You would have none of that if I hadn't hauled you out of that pit when every Bureau rule and natural instinct told me to leave you behind. Besides, I'm not even asking you to stick your neck out. You do this for me, and we are clear. Once you're done with this, you can tell anyone you want whatever you like."

Durio muttered something unintelligible, then demanded, "What is it?"

"I need you to make sure the Bureau stays off of Terra for at least the next year. They have to keep their hands off, completely, for one full year, regardless of provocation. I won't object to longer, but I need that year."

"You're going after Yagami?" Durio sighed, "Shimazu'll rip you apart, Wilhelm."

"That is my concern. Yours is to keep the Bureau off Terra for one year. Can you do it?"

Durio swore again, then said, "Yes, I can do it. It'll take me a couple days to figure out how and set it up, a few more to process through, so you'll have to put up with whoever's there for a bit longer, probably a couple weeks. Hallaoun's not going to take any interference lightly, especially not if you do something that would normally involve us, so he could slip something past me. But the Bureau as a whole? I can manage that."

"That's fine," Wilhelm said. It would give him time to generate his own revised plans, even if Hallaoun did slip something past Triann's obstructions. He hung up without another word.

_That takes care of the Bureau,_ he told himself, _now to buy a little time with the locals._

He looked around again, and found his team right where he expected, standing around outside their barracks debating the newest upheaval. A gesture got one man's attention, and Wilhelm waved him over. Once he was in speaking distance, Wilhelm moved to meet him, "Thorngrave, keep the Dogs ready to move for me. I have some contacts of my own I need to get in touch with, see what they can give me, but they won't react well if I show up with any official baggage. If Hughes calls, keep him happy. Got me?"

Thorngrave chuckled and shook his head, "I thought you were smart, Schuster. You take a vacation now, Hughes'll scalp you."

Kriegsen grinned back, "He won't, not with what I'm expecting to bring back. Just keep him from pulling the trigger before I'm back, shouldn't be more than a day or four."

"Understood, sir, and good luck," Thorngrave said.

00000

_"I freely admit that I underestimated the entire situation. Everyone did, on all sides. The rebels underestimated us, Hayate underestimated us and the rebels, we underestimated the rebels and the extant nations, the Bureau underestimated the entire Homeworld equation. Those mistakes cost many lives, before and during the war._

_"But I'll tell you true, everyone – __everyone__ – grossly underestimated Yagami Hayate. Can you really blame us? The first time I met her, she was a little wisp of a girl, hardly old enough to be interested in boys, let alone a mage. She had a pair of Masters and a Master Adept backing her up, but we already knew that was half her trained mages, and she was considered the most powerful faction on Homeworld. It was pathetic! What could that little girl do in the face of our manifest power and superiority? Out of that entire glorious affair, that mistake alone is what I feel guilty for. If we, if __I__, had not so grossly underestimated her, the war would have cost far less, ended much sooner, and turned out far better, for everyone."_

- Szash Freisan, General of the Armies of Terra, as quoted in a live-broadcast interview on Founding Day, Year Thirty.

00000

Author's Note: large parts of this chapter and the preceding two chapters were originally planned and written as a single chapter. Thing is, it wound up being somewhere between twenty and thirty pages, and dumped an _incredible_ amount of information in a single hit. Even before I finished it, I was looking at breaking it up. So I broke it up into more manageable chunks, and combined it with a couple scenes planned for just-prior or just-after. Sorry if those felt filler-ish, I promise they're not, but the whole-chapter approach would have been painfully long, even for me. Also, admit it – you all forgot about Kriegsen, didn't you?:)

00000

Skyfall v2.0: The quick release of these last couple chapters is explained in the note above – the critical parts were written all at once, but too much to post at once. The basic identification of the 'newcomers' is done, but this is now about where Nanoha As was when the Bureau crew moved into the apartment in Japan. Niranjana and Allina are, admittedly, a peripheral plot point, as are all the relationships of various sorts (even Laura and the twins), but they will play a part. How each of the characters handles the upcoming crisis/crises will in large part be affected by those relationships, Niranjana and Allina especially. If it weren't for how tightly those relationships will affect later events, I would have much more fodder for Side Stories. As for Natalia meeting Fate, maybe, but given her history, any questions Natalia attempts to ask Fate about Precia are liable to backfire. Thanks for the review!

A Cannon: I'm glad you liked last chapter, here's the 'rest' of it. No real cliffhanger this time, two in as many chapters is enough for me:). I have to be careful with Allina and Niranjana, due to where I want them to end up. Same with several of the other relationships, some of which hopefully aren't clear yet, some of which should be. I am going to try to wrap up everything by the end, the trick is going to be if I can do that in a reasonable way, matching that 'tying off' with the end of major events. You are right about not all the characters getting equal screen-time, but they all have their parts. It's fun, but I think I'm going to have to sit down and plot out some more Side Stories, especially for the new kids. I won't say when, but Nanoha and Fate will also have parts in this story (the Bureau is hardly going to ignore this, after all), which is actually making me nervous since I'm uncertain of doing them justice. We'll see. Thank you for reviewing!

Kell Shock: You're half right about who stopped Hassed – it was originally, purely from habit, going to be Reian. But remember, Reian's an Ensign, still somewhat uncertain of himself. Aignu was there, and had the authority to back Hassed down. Probably should have been clearer on that, though, I may have to rework the paragraph. Your theory about where the city came from, how it got there, and how it got out is essentially correct. The big question is, who banished the city? Was it the Circles, as Yosho and Szash claim, or did they do it to themselves as the Circles insist? As far as the Atlanteans standing up to the Bureau, remember they currently have very little information about the Bureau other than whatever Aignu, Hassed, and their people reported. So they may be capable of holding off the Bureau, or may only think they can. As for Bureau mage strength, I haven't seen anything on their averages/ranks other than a basic description of each mage-rank, but it does make sense, just from statistics, that most would be in C range. For purposes of this story, I'm not entirely matching strength to rank (Nanoha's an Admiral, but Chrono got there first, and guess who has the higher strength), but generally anyone of Admiral and up is going to be at least A rank. Which leaves the vast majority of mages at B-rank or lower. I will also say that none of Hayate's kids, not even the first-years, are below A-rank potential. They can't pass the Bureau's tests for those strengths yet, but that's where they're all headed.

bloodied cypher: Thanks for reviewing, and I'm glad you're enjoying it. At present, I have no plans for a sequel to Endless Waltz. In all honesty, I doubt there will be, beyond possibly a couple post-script Side Stories. The setting is starting to feel a little 'stretched', and given what I already have planned, it's going to be more trouble than it's worth to top Endless Waltz. I'm still fiddling with an idea for a prequel, though...:). As for the Harry Potter comparisons... I suppose I shouldn't whine about them, but GAH! I liked Gundam Wing well enough, but I'm not sure why you were asking, in relation to Academy Blues?

Ray Venn Hakubi: Actually the funny part is, Al Hanthis' return repaired the tear in reality:), even if the fact that they could come out of a null 'breaks the rules'. As for why the city never came through, that's complicated, mostly due to the fact that where they wound up does not work according to any rules human beings are at all used to. Remember Yosho's comment at the start of last chapter, about 'time only works for us because we want it to'? I don't think it'll come up, but essentially by the time the city recovered from its banishment, there were no more nulls for them to bridge through. Then there's issues of stability, detection, the fact that a null that was 'near' in the void was not necessarily 'near' in real-space, etc... essentially, a lot of things went right to give them the chance to escape that they took. I am familiar with Forgotten Realms (go read my story Flamewalker, it's set there:) I never really cared for the Netheril, though, mostly because I didn't like the survivors from the Plane of Shadows. Two one-dimensional as a race, for me. As for Laputa, from what I remember of the movie, the society of floating cities destroyed themselves by trying to turn their technology to war and conquering... sort of like the legends of Atlantis... hmmm, how about that?:) In all three cases, I think it's mostly a matter of 'common inspiration'.

Baughn: My apologies for the confusion. I wanted to intro some of the Atlanteans from the start, but figuring out how to do it without blowing half the plot was difficult to impossible. Apparently it didn't quite work. 'Outside reality' does depend in large part on definitions. Yosho's explanation above fits best – the nulls are cracks in reality that leave one stranded between dimensions, essentially what happens when you try to travel between dimensions, successfully leave your own, but don't quite make it to the next one – limbo. Most of your questions about why/when the city broke free are due, as I told Ray Venn Hakubi, to timing and luck – this was the first time a potential exit was 'close enough', 'stable enough' and 'large enough' (all of which are very poor terms for how I'm picturing it, to be honest) for the city to use. The thing with Niranjana and Allina... they aren't critical to the plot, but the growth and status of their relationship is going to affect what they do later on (together and apart). The same is true with Mercedes and Yussef, Laura and the twins, Mariachi and Cidela, pretty much all the relationships I've spent time on, romantic relationships or otherwise. Putting that scene to Niranjana's viewpoint simplified combining some of her plot-line with the initial warnings at the school. In all honesty, I would be terrified of what Laura could pull off if she understood quantum physics as well as a true physicist does, though a large part of her creativity and flexibility (and danger) comes from the fact that she does not actually know what won't work. I'm still not sure if that is going to blow up in her face or not. The interference with the generators and engines was not due to the null, but to side-effects of the Atlantean's efforts to pull their city free, and yes, it would have had catastrophic effects on any unprotected lifeforms in the area – that was what Reian and the others were struggling to protect themselves from. Best way to think of it is, the city breaking free was the 'far end' of a full-blown dimensional dislocation, assuming what the Bureau usually tries to prevent is the 'near end'. As for bringing the entire city in one shot, it may or may not have been a one-shot attempt, but what if the attempt closed the null (as it did)? Any scouts would have been 'safe' on the far side, but the city would have remained trapped. More of their predicament will be made clear in upcoming chapters, but in short, the Masters were too scared of where they were _not _to take the chance, risky as it was. You are correct that the Atlanteans have to have better control over their magi-tech than the Bureau ever managed, but look at Yosho's explanation for Al Hazred – he blames it on their equivalent of real-world Luddites. And the 'victors write the history books' seems to apply to both sides, doesn't it?:)

Natimus Prime: Funny, I get things thrown at me when I use the old 'Holy whatever Batman' joke. It's not fair. Things are about to get messy, for a lot of reasons, and part of that is going to be the Masters and the Bureau reacting on partial information and misunderstandings, along with everyone else. As for what sort of magic the Atlanteans use, it is fundamentally the same as Midchildan, Velkan, and Circle magic, as it is the basis for all three. Thing is, all three 'modern' types diverged from the 'original' magic in key ways after the Al Hazred disaster, resulting in the Circles staid but cooperative non-enhanced magic and the Midchildan and Velkan use of devices. It will be clarified eventually, though not all at once. Thanks for the review!

nolrai: Glad you enjoyed it so far. Niranjana's and Allina's relationship needed to be updated/detailed for future events to make sense. As for the chapter title, I like the simplicity of it, but it's also quite literal – what the City of Al Hanthis did is impossible according to every rule and theory of magic I've seen in the Nanoha-verse, so...:). Thanks for reading & reviewing!


	17. 16 Opening Gambit

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-16 – Opening Gambit-

Shamal managed to get in touch with Noriko's family, and with the phone company while Hayate was gone. Between the two, the volume of calls to Hayate's office faded, and by the time she returned from Al Hanthis, Shamal had managed to reclaim the office for the necessary call to Chrono. She had to promise Hayate would speak to the press herself that evening, but she restored tranquility to Hayate's office, at least.

When Hayate did return, she wasted no time walking, teleporting overhead and flying down rapidly. She released Aignu and her crew from the Sword of Light upon landing in front of the Library, relaying orders immediately. "Signum, please inform the children of what we have found," she ordered, "Vita, assist Commander Tessai in getting their crew back to the Shiva. Admiral Aignu, if you will come with me, please, we'll get in touch with Headquarters."

As they went up the stairs, Aignu asked, "Is there a reason you're telling your students? I'm not criticizing, I'm just curious. They are children, after all."

Hayate smiled and shook her head. "Yes they are, yet at the same time, no they are not. I chose well when I picked them from all the candidates. They are much as I was, much as Nanoha and Fate and Chrono were, at their ages. They are skilled and lucky, but mostly they are good people. People who are used to being involved, being 'proactive' as the personnel officers like to say. If I did not keep them informed, they would find some other way to discover what is going on, and act on that knowledge as best they could. Last year, I thought to keep them safe. This year... I am responsible for protecting them, yes, but I am more responsible for educating them, for teaching them, for giving them the knowledge, space, and support they need to become what they have the potential to be. So... I find myself in the uncomfortable position of having to prepare my kids for the worst. Not that we should be involved, particularly. This is clearly Bureau business, and I will be more than happy to hand it over to you and Chrono."

Getting settled in her office, she used Reinforce to open a communications screen on the wall opposite the door, and signal Chrono she was available. It took him a couple minutes to respond, and the normally unflappable young man actually looked worried. "Sorry for the wait," he apologized, "I've got a few other calls running right now, and Amy keeps sending more in."

Hayate nodded in sympathy, "I couldn't even use my office for a while. I think Shamal disabled the phone in here. But, if you have a few minutes, I have an initial report."

"Oh, you would not believe how glad I am to hear that," Chrono grinned, leaning back in his chair. "Enlighten me, Hayate. What trouble have you gone and woken up this time?"

Relaying what she had found was simple enough, years of pre- and post-battle reports let her subconscious organize the information she had found and present it in a relatively orderly fashion. Looking back over the meeting did not do anything to calm her worries. The more she looked at Al Hanthis, the harder that nut seemed to be. To have survived in the void for so long they had to be both skilled and tough. They were only fifty years from a vicious civil war, and if Yosho was any guide, they still had plenty of veterans left. They were highly organized, already set in a siege mentality, and determined to secure not just their city, but everything they considered theirs – all of Terra.

Aignu's report was a little longer than Hayate's, but she had little to add. She and her crew had been taken into custody by a squad of Yosho's 'Protectors'. The frightening part was, she could confirm that, while they apparently used no devices, they were utilizing a level of power that _required _devices. Whether that power was being remotely supplied by the city, or they had some other form of device, was unknown, but they had plenty of power available on an individual basis.

Chrono listened attentively, taking their reports calmly enough, though his humor did fade. When Aignu finished he sighed slightly and leaned his head back for a minute, to stare at his own ceiling. "I've got two immediate problems," he said after a minute. "The first and most critical is personnel. To be honest, Hayate, we're still reeling from the crowd you and Fate dumped on us back in February. Just keeping tabs on all those people threw a huge wrench in the works. Fate's little trick of rotating that base into a pocket dimension took a good year off the service life of _Asura_'s engines and shields, six months or more off the ship's very frame. Thanks to that, not that I blame either of you, my ship's been in dock getting repairs. We were getting tight on ships and personnel even before that. So, as of right now, per procedure, the only ship I have available to send is the _Shiva_, which is already there.

"The second point is more nebulous. I'm not so worried about the fact that the city is outside our official jurisdiction but... what right do we really have to seize Al Hanthis, if all they're looking for is a new home. It comes down to, are they invaders, or refugees? At first glance, they appear to be the first, but that could be a bargaining position taken by the second to make sure they are taken seriously. And if they _are_ the first, can we convince them to become the second? I'm not comfortable asserting 'Bureau Regulations' on... what did you estimate, Hayate, two million people? Not after what they've been through. I'll do it, but I would much rather find some other course."

"Two to three million," Hayate agreed, "most to all with some magical ability, though I did not get a good read on their strengths."

Chrono shrugged, "I'm not comfortable enforcing our laws on two to three million people who's only real crime is being born before our laws existed. There are huge implications here, well beyond the potential for a dimensional dislocation or worse. Even if we do everything right, this could still blow up in all our faces."

"Yes, but if we do nothing, it _will_ blow up," Hayate said. "If it helps, Aria is already putting together a formal request for Bureau intervention and assistance. She should be sending it to Amy shortly."

"Good, that will help shake resources loose," Chrono nodded, rolling upright again. "I'm not trying to tell you I won't do anything, Hayate, that wasn't my point. I was just getting the bad news out of the way. The good news is, Admiral Aignu is already on-site with the _Shiva_. Fate and the Asura will need three days to button-up for space, but I can have two other ships on their way to you today. They should get there about when the _Asura_'s cut loose, and by then I should also be able to shake loose a few ships from neighboring sectors. I'll also have three more ships in-sector reassigned from less critical missions. I've already prepared an alert for the High Command, I'll be briefing them in a few hours. I don't doubt they'll shake something loose, and they'll certainly give the Bureau's full support to our intervention."

"So, essentially," Hayate mused, "You're going to help, you're getting assistance to us as fast as you can, but we're on our own for a few days?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"I appreciate the help, believe me," Hayate said, "but a couple days... I'll be honest, Chrono, I have no idea how the Circles are going to react to this. Given their history and methods, I expect they will pull back and take some time to evaluate this threat, to plan their response. But they know this is the 'Atlantis' they so vilify. They may very well _not _think, but simply attack. Given what they have been working on with the Black Dogs, they certainly have the capabilities to do so, and realize it."

"I would have to agree with Hayate, sir," Aignu added, shaking her head. "Major Hassed was... less than reasonable, while we were being held. The Al Hanthis mages were very civilized about the whole thing, very polite. Hassed was not. I'm fairly certain that the only reason he did not try to fight his way out was my own threat to bind him and his permanently. If he had thought for a minute that I would not interfere, or that I might aid him, he would have fought. My read is, the Circles will strike as soon as they can, however futile that attack might be."

"Understood," Chrono sighed and shook his head, "Hayate, do what you can to keep them calm. Let them know the Bureau is responding, maybe that will scare them into backing down. Don't take them on, though. If they're determined to attack, stay out of their way and keep me and Aignu informed. Worry about your school, we'll handle the Circles and Al Hanthis on this one."

"Thank you, Chrono-kun."

"Not a problem," Chrono replied, "now, if you don't mind, I've got to see what Amy wants me to tell the High Command about this. Aignu, I'd appreciate a formal report as soon as possible, but make sure your ship is secure and your people all right first."

Aignu nodded with a small smile, "Aye, sir." The screen blanked out, and Aignu chuckled, "You have no idea how hard it was not to say, 'yes, mother,' just then."

Hayate chuckled as well, "Oh, I don't know. You haven't seen my Knights when I'm wounded, or one of my kids has gotten up to something. Chrono has nothing on Shamal. Is there anything we can do to help?"

Aignu shook her head, "Thank you, but no. At the moment, all I really need is to get back to my ship. Ever since that city popped up, I've been feeling rather vulnerable, and would like a nice, solid, _armed _command deck under my feet."

Hayate saw her out, then watched her and her mages lift of and head for the top of the teleport barrier before disappearing in a flash. When she looked back at her campus, she found her Knights and students standing in the dorm courtyard. Feeling her worries spike again, Hayate headed over. _This is going to be a long week,_ she thought, _pray Kami-sama it's only long, and only a week._

00000

Szash looked up from the array of screens when Eri coughed softly. Cocking an eyebrow, she waved her adjutant over, changing stance just enough to focus on Eri instead of the screens. She should have been at her desk in her office proper, but the attached front office, with Eri's and Gali's desks at each end, had more and larger windows, and thus a better view. While she may have grown up with the endless dark of the Void, the sight of reality, a true world, was too precious not to take advantage of.

Eri arrived with a small smile, and a question, "Would you like to know what the Lord Protector has gotten up to now, ma'am?"

Szash frowned, "I'm guessing it's something nefarious, given how happy you seem to be about it."

"He is meeting with another off-worlder," Eri told her. "The man showed up at the edge of the shield and demanded to speak to 'whoever is in charge'. The Protectors got to him first, and are taking him to see the Lord Protector."

"Another local?" Szash turned it over a few times, wondering what the newcomer was doing. That depended greatly on where he was from, and who he claimed to represent. "Do we know anything about him?"

Eri nodded and woke another screen, bringing up an image of an older man in a blue uniform, "He calls himself 'Admiral Kreigsen', and claims to be a shadow operative for the Time Space Administration Bureau."

"Like those enhanced mages Yosho let go yesterday?"

"So it would seem." Eri glanced at the main door to the suite, then her smile widened slightly, "One of our officers managed to get a bug on him, while arguing with the Protector about bringing him here, instead of to Yosho. Should we activate it?"

Szash matched the smile, feeling a thrill of anticipation. Pulling one over on Yosho was always worth it, and a chance to listen in on his conversation with an outsider would be invaluable. "Of course. Our Lord Protector is so overworked, let's save him the difficulty of preparing a special briefing for us. By all means, Eri, activate the surveillance."

00000

Yosho watched Kreigsen carefully as Journeyman Turo escorted the man into his office. Kriegsen presented a mostly average appearance, save for his white hair and age-line face. His stance was far from old, however, beneath the immaculate blue uniform, and his eyes were just as solid as Yagami's had been. There was nothing special in the way the man moved, no obvious sign of implants, but meeting Yagami and her people the day before had disabused him of any notion that implants were as necessary for higher magics as he had always believed. Then there was the fact that Kriegsen shared the same sense of shivering unreality that Yagami had, the feeling of magic just barely under control. Finally there was the manner of his arrival – claiming to be from the Bureau, he had manifestly not come from the vessel the Bureau was maintaining in orbit.

Given all of that, Yosho was not going to trust Kriegsen any time soon, and he saw no reason to be more than minimally polite. Official communications with local authorities had already been established through Yagami, and possibly through Aignu, so Kriegsen had to be doing something unofficial, which meant underhanded and of questionable legality. It was also far too soon for any sort of response to the initial demands Yosho had related to Yagami the day before.

So Kriegsen found no chairs waiting for him, and instead of leaving, Turo merely took up position by the door. Kriegsen studied that for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Good morning, Lord Protector," he said in Japanese after a moment, "I am Admiral Wilhelm Kriegsen, Time Space Administration Bureau, detached duty."

"Good morning," Yosho replied slowly, then fell silent, waiting. Kriegsen came to Al Hanthis, he could state his purpose.

Kriegsen nodded again, smirking slightly in recognition of Yosho's superior position. "I'll come right to the point, then. I am on this world undertaking a covert mission for the Bureau, a delicate matter. Your arrival here has, at one and the same time, destroyed any hope I had of fulfilling my mission by conventional means, yet offered the possibility of doing so by _un_conventional means. I wanted to speak to you about the potential for an arrangement between us."

"Interesting," Yosho murmured. "Your Admiral Aignu made no mention of your presence, neither did Lady Yagami. Is there some reason for that?"

"As I said, my mission is covert, and delicate. I'm afraid the Yagami woman is one of the obstacles to completing that mission." Kriegsen grimaced momentarily, "I am afraid, Lord Protector, that I am hunting a murderer. A monster who delights not only in death, but in rampant destruction that risks the very fabric of reality. I will be honest, the lost logia I see all over this city are repugnant, and in the absence of other considerations, I would never even consider approaching you with anything other than a demand for surrender. But you appear to have the artifacts under control, for the moment, and I am certain that the Bureau can resolve this situation amicably through normal channels. My own target, however, has never evinced the last concern with controlling or cleaning up his 'experiments', and certainly never showed any concern for the loss of life he causes."

Yosho listened to that speech carefully, noting two things. The first and most obvious was, Kriegsen was not telling him more than half the truth, if that. The second was, whoever this 'target' was, Kriegsen hated him with a passion, a cold, subtle passion normally reserved for the most personal and longest-term feuds. _This is no 'covert mission',_ Yosho realized, _this is a personal vendetta. What makes him think we will stoop so low as to pursue it for him?_ "While that sounds grave, Admiral, I must ask what you expect us to do about it? From your description, Lady Yagami would be the appropriate person to discuss this with."

The flash of hatred in Kriegsen's features was minute, but significantly 'hotter' than that for the target. It was more present in his voice, "The Yagami woman is my target's student. She thinks she is learning magic, but he is trying to craft her into another monster, to shape her into his own image. It is a tactic he has used before, both to cover his own activities, and to amplify his 'experiments'. No, approaching her would result only in violence and more people dying needlessly. She would warn the monster, and he would escape again.

"As for what you can do for me... you can do what I have so far been unable to do, and kill Takashi. Despite his nature, or perhaps because of it, he is powerful. I will admit, he is stronger than I am, too strong for me. But not strong enough to face numbers such as you can bring to bear. He survived the Bureau's original efforts to eliminate him by sleight of hand and luck, until the Yagami woman concocted some fairy tail just believable enough to give the Bureau an excuse to drop the public pursuit. Sleight of hand and luck would be insufficient against your forces, given his refusal to leave this world until the Yagami woman has served her purpose."

"Again, I still do not see why we would assist you."

Kriegsen gestured, and a paper folder appeared in his hand with a snap of magical energies. The Admiral ignored the sudden tension in the room to set the folder on Yosho's desk. "A preliminary offering, to prove I have something of value to you. Whatever happens here, it will come to violence, and you will need to know everything you can about your enemies."

Yosho considered the folder for a few seconds before reaching out for it. There were any number of ways it could be trapped, especially as Kreigsen had to have produced it out of a dimensional pocket of some sort, for it to be un-creased after being in his jacket. But a quick scan showed no magic in the folder, only paper, so Yosho flipped it open, and had to work very hard to show no reaction. The upper right corner of the first page was filled with a picture of Yagami, the rest of the page filled with basic information about her, mostly vital statistics and a very brief history.

The second sheet was a picture of a man Yosho did not know, square face and graying hair, wearing some sort of uniform. The caption was definitely interesting – Garreth Hughes, Master Adept (Terran Mage Circles), Colonel (United States Army). Beneath that page were more, an almost even mix of Circles and Yagami's subordinates and... students? Holding up the first, Yosho asked, "Children?"

"Yagami herself was an S-class mage before she was ten," Kriegsen replied, "her students are almost as skilled, and she has no hesitation about sending them into battle for her. More of Takashi's corruption."

"And you are offering full information on them?"

"Everything I have, which is quite a lot. They are skilled in magic, not so skilled in security and espionage. I have also spent the past few years gathering information on them. I'm offering everything I have, for a simple commitment. When Takashi intervenes, you kill him.

"Your situation is simple. For simplicity's sake, Takashi will attempt to resolve the threat you represent peacefully, to save himself the trouble and retain the opportunity to gain access to your technology. The Circles, however, will not wait. They will attack, as soon and as viciously as they can manage. Due to their prior agreements, their attack upon you will force the Yagami woman to act in their support, which will force Takashi to act to support her. Thus, you will wind up having to face them in battle. All I am asking is that you forgo capturing him, in favor of killing him. As for the rest, I don't care. Capture them, kill them, banish them, anything you want. Yagami is not yet lost, but she is not my concern. Her students even less so.

"I am offering you the information, regardless of what you do with it, to dominate and control the situation here on Terra. All the information you need to turn this dilemma however you wish it, to peace or war, to coexistence or dominance. All I'm asking for is the destruction of one monster."

Yosho nodded slowly, "I understand your offer, Admiral. I am only debating taking it. You have to understand, as valuable as this information could be, there are moral implications to what you are suggesting. There is a difference between killing enemies in war, and murdering someone for information. I am going to have to think about this. Not for long, but I cannot make such a decision in haste. Journeyman Turo, if you would, please escort the Admiral to our guest quarters at the top of the tower. I promise you an answer before sundown, Admiral. Other than that, please consider yourself our guest."

Turo escorted Kriegsen out without much difficulty, and Yosho leaned back in his chair, contemplating the offer. The details themselves were simple enough, and despite his comments, he had no compunctions about accepting the offer. What was more questionable was how to go about accepting, and how to go about using the information.

Simply accepting would be dangerous, especially given the inevitable questions about where the information came from and how reliable it was. Given his own read of Kriegsen, Yosho expected the information to be accurate, but incomplete. Just as Yagami was honest and seeking to avoid violence but strong-willed enough to meet like with like, Kriegsen was too angry and too involved not to offer real data, but patently too much a manipulator to hand over everything so cheaply. Similarly, if Yosho just suddenly had this information, too many questions would be asked, especially given the publicity with which Kriegsen had arrived.

Yosho could attempt to keep the information to himself. Showing that level of insight into their enemies would strengthen his claim that he was better equipped to resolve their current predicament safely, especially if Szash misread something, or an attack did develop. But again, questions would arise as to where he got that insight. He could claim 'observation', as he normally did and was known for, but that only worked with his fellow Masters and those too inexperienced to know how he did it. Even Szash understood it took more than a single meeting to develop the 'insight' Kriegsen's intelligence would give him.

It basically came down to when and where he wanted the source of his information to get out. Too soon, and he would not be able to put it to use. Too long, and it would lose its value. On top of all that, he would have to have time to assimilate the information, plan how to use it. The use of it would be even more complicated, requiring careful planning and execution.

The timing would be critical. Szash and the Guard may have been sidelined in the Void, but she was making very good arguments in the Conclave already about the limit of the Protectors' authority and power. Simple manpower would give her the upper hand, eventually, but the longer he could retain a superior position, the better his own long-term influence would be. Skilled as she was, Szash had no real experience, especially not in actual combat or leading a war. Yosho had to keep as much of his influence as possible, to balance Szash's youthful exuberance and inexperience. The best way to do that would be to show that he and the Protectors could best handle the survivor governments that the Conclave was even now studying. So he needed Kriegsen's information, and could not keep it secret, and had to be very careful about how to reveal he had it.

"Szash will be the problem," he muttered, drumming his fingers on his desk. "If she finds out too soon, she'll slip it to the Conclave again. But she has her fingers into everything except the Protectors. I could trim her network back, but that will tip her off that something is up. I don't know enough about it to subvert it or use it myself... so I have to make sure she finds out after I am established as the expert. An interesting conundrum."

00000

Szash frowned as the screen blanked, turning to walk to the window and stare out for a few moments. Eri and Gali left her alone to think, and Szash was glad of their restraint. The deal itself was a surprise, but Yosho's response was worrisome.

Young or not, Szash had not become General of the Guard based on her looks or her youth. Both Eri and Gali were her elders, and both had made Adept long before her. They had not made Master, as she had, but she had no illusions about that being due to lack of skill. They were unwilling to put in the grueling hours, or accept the responsibilities, that came with Master's rank, reasons which had almost been too much for Szash herself. No, Szash was General because she had the drive and, more importantly, the ability to put together accurate situational pictures from limited information.

So she saw the same picture Yosho did. Despite his statement about the 'moral implications', she knew Yosho was far too practical not to take the offer. Murder or not, one life was a pittance to pay for the security of their people, especially if the victim was a monstrous as Kriegsen was implying.

But Yosho was being cautious, cagey. His response was calculating, he was looking for something else, or worried about something else. "Yosho will accept the deal," Szash mused, "but he is going to try to keep it secret."

"I do not think we can take this to the Conclave again, General," Gali said. "A second attempt like that would arouse suspicion."

"No," Szash agreed, "this time, I think it's going to be a matter of a underhanded subversion. I don't think we should go directly to Kriegsen – showing disunity in front of an outsider is a bad idea – but..." she trailed off as an idea occurred to her, grinning at the simple beauty of it. "Oh, this is going to be fun. How to get the information from Yosho, when he's going to want to keep it secret? Oh, yes, all sorts of fun. Eri, Journeyman Turo is too firmly attached to Yosho, but some of the other Protectors aren't. See if a couple of our Guardsmen who are cross-posted can reestablish contacts with the Protectors. We'll need a source of information among Yosho's people, and we need to get whatever information Kriegsen provides.

"Yosho is too indirect. He'll try to manipulate and talk his way into a position of power with the locals, but all he'll manage is to give them time. We're going to have to be ready to move, before he is, with information just as good. The Conclave will have to act soon, and we can't afford for Yosho's half-hearted methods to cost us our safety."

00000

With Hayate out of the teaching rotation for a couple days, Aria was pulling double duty, teaching both her usual language classes, and the two magic classes. Despite that, the arrival of Al Hanthis loomed too large in everyone's thoughts for much to be accomplished. Whether looking forward to a challenge, fearing a repeat of the Circles' February attack, or worried about Vita's stories of past lost logia going out of control, everyone had something other than class on their minds.

Mariachi was distracted by the sight of the Seed, waiting in their pods, all around the perimeter of the city. Vita's visual surveillance had shown the pods all over the perimeter of the city, with a final count just shy of one million. To Mariachi, those things were far more frightening than enemy mages or Circle traps. While the teachers could handle one Seed easily, or even several, there were so many in that city that it was far too easy to picture the school being over-run. Even worse, there was the thought of all the people between Al Hanthis and the school, people the Seed would roll right over.

Not being one to seek out battle, and uncomfortably unable to sooth his own nerves, he found himself reviewing the recordings of the Seed that had attacked the campus. A day and a half before Hayate was forced to euthanize them left a lot of recordings, all of it monotonously the same. Two Seed, one injured the other not, prowling tirelessly around the chamber. Shamal had been reviewing the recordings as well, until the latest upheaval, but no one was watching them by the time Mariachi took to looking them over.

As was his habit, he was more interested in sound than sight. Yussef had pointed out after the Seed attack, the two creatures worked too well together to be totally independent. They had to be communicating somehow, but there was nothing in the audible or upper sonic ranges. He was tuning lower, looking for something, anything, through a set of wireless headphones, when Rafiq slithered over his lap. Even then, he did not really notice at first, just absently scratching at the snake's head.

Then he realized what he was doing, started slightly and blinked down at the serpent coiled up a chair leg and half in his lap. Pulling off his headphones, he muttered, "Sorry, Rafiq," and reached down to help the familiar the rest of the way up. It was more than a little weird, feeling the scaly weight sliding up his arm and over his shoulders, but he was getting used to it, and gave no sign. Mariachi disliked snakes, but Rafiq was not _actually_ a snake, something Mariachi had to remind himself of every so often.

"It's fine," Rafiq muttered, "Mistress is looking for you."

That was something else that took a mental adjustment. When anyone else on campus spoke of 'Mistress', they meant Hayate, to the point where the two words were essentially interchangeable. Rafiq, and Rafiq alone, meant Cidela. "Where is she now?"

"On the way from a lesson with Okaa-san," Rafiq told him. "Once again, I found myself banished to the cold and wet. Oh, the sufferings of a faithful servant."

Chuckling a little at the emotionless delivery, Mariachi shook his head, "suffering my left foot. You were hunting Megan again, weren't you?"

"_With _Megan," Rafiq countered. "I was hunting with Megan. She needs to better her skills, if she presumes to share in familiars' skills."

"Elitist."

"Realist."

"Sarcastic," Mariachi countered. "Where did you get that from, anyhow?"

"It appears to be part of being a familiar," Rafiq mused. "We are from our Master, of our Master, yet different from our Master."

Mariachi could see where he was going. "You provide harmony, like lead and backup instruments. We should look into that, actually. See if you can use that for more than just keeping her healing under control."

"Please, not more lessons, Mariachi-kun," Cidela asked as she settled into the chair next to him. "Okaa-san is already occupying most of my time, plus regular lessons, homework, all the worry over Atlantis..."

Mariachi managed to keep his amusement to a smile. "You sound like Laura, Cid-chan. Careful, or Mercedes'll prank you."

"No one will make that mistake, Mariachi-kun." Then she leaned over, looking at the screen, and asked, "What were you checking?"

"Sounds," Mariachi answered, "looking to see if the Seed were talking. I think there is something in the lower ranges."

She gave him a quizzical look, "lower ranges?"

"Below human hearing," Mariachi explained. "If I can find it, I can do something like Cacophony, disrupt them, distract them."

"Why? They are frightening, but not all that much of a threat."

Mariachi shook his head, "They aren't much of a threat to _us_. But what happens if those things get loose in a city? Or if a couple thousand get dumped on us at once?"

"We stop them," Cidela replied, then blinked. "Oh, yes, I see now."

Mariachi nodded, "Yeah, how do we stop _all_ of them? I don't know if this'll work at all, let alone how well, but..."

When he trailed off, she finished, "but you need to do something. I understand. Here," she gestured slightly, and a holographic screen appeared over the table, which promptly filled with a list of files, "Okaa-san gave me access to the post-mortem studies, maybe I can find something in there."

"Kinda gruesome," Mariachi commented, catching some of the file names which were less than subtle.

"It's interesting," Cidela protested.

"It's gruesome," Rafiq repeated, then slithered off Mariachi's shoulder to Cidela's, "but you wouldn't be you if you were not intrigued, Mistress. I suggest starting with the nervous system. There should be clusters of nerves around all the sensory organs. If the Seed can hear, such a cluster should be identifiable. From there, _what _they hear can be determined."

They worked in silence for a while, her perusing Shamal's records, him scanning slowly through the recordings. It was not the most comfortable of topics, but it was interesting, and working with Cidela was – he was prepared to admit privately – comfortable. Unlike most of his fellow students, she was not worrying about becoming stronger, preparing for battle, or obsessed with magic, she was just curious, just exploring.

It did not take him very long after that to locate the Seeds' communications, though actually isolating it took longer. The sounds were so far below human hearing he was not sure if they actually qualified as sound, or how it propagated in air. Nonetheless, it was there, regular and modulated just as human speech, though he had no idea what any of the modulations meant.

Cidela had better luck. "The Seed have all the usual senses, including hearing. They hear the normal range just fine, but like the inverse of dogs, they hear lower than humans do better. There's no larynx, though, not in their throat. It looks like these structures inside what looks like their nostrils are designed to vibrate, like a pair of drums. Muscles around the membranes create and control the vibrations. Given how complicated the muscle structure is, we may even be able to communicate with them, perhaps even figure out how to talk them out of attacking us."

"Maybe," Mariachi agreed, "but for the moment, I'll settle for keeping them from talking to each other. Take away that, they're just a bunch of individual fighters. Even better if I can do it without breaking up our own communications while I'm at it."

"Do you think it will take you long?"

He shrugged, looking over the sound-data again. "A basic Cacophony should work now. They hear 'normal' sounds just as well as humans, after all, and Cacophony does a number on humans. Managing something that won't also hurt humans will be difficult. Sound this low, we're looking at ranges that's where sonic weapons work best, according to some theories. I don't want to accidentally implode someone's lungs because they got too close to a Seed."

Cidela grimaced, "That would not be good. Would you like assistance? Perhaps targeted bursts could deafen them briefly?"

"I'd appreciate it," Mariachi agreed, "but I doubt a targeted burst would be efficient. Remember, the point is to disable lots of Seed as quickly as possible over a large area. A continuous harmonic? Something that will carry, will confuse, but won't harm..." He trailed off, then shrugged, "you up for a little workroom practice?"

Cidela made a face, "Normally, yes, but not today. Okaa-san had some complicated exercises for Didier and I this afternoon."

Mariachi chuckled sympathetically, and shut off both his terminal and Cidela's holo-screen. "Come on, then. I need to get some music in, and we can work on your singing." Cidela froze and paled, and tried to shake her head, but Mariachi pulled her up gently. "Come on, Cid-chan. No one's going to make fun of you for this, other than begging for an encore. You remember how bad Laura was, and she didn't care."

"Laura is Laura," Cidela protested.

"And you are a better singer than she is. Come on, it'll be fun. Just the sort of relaxing diversion everyone needs. No one will laugh, I promise."

He was pushing her towards the door by then, ignoring the smirks from Toushiro and Luke, as well as the disapproving frowns from Marcel and Natalia. Cidela resisted, right up until they reached the door, then sighed, relaxed slightly, and whispered, "I'll get you for this, Mariachi-kun."

00000

bloodied cipher: Atlantis/Al Hanthis and Al Hazred are not quite one and the same. Al Hazred was (per my continuity only, I'm afraid) a colony. Atlantis was a city of the world and civilization that _founded _the Al Hazred colony. There's more that will be revealed in the course of the story, but that's the key point. The Al Hazred that blew up and almost destroyed creation was, in simplest terms, an Atlantean colony.

Kell Shock: Laura is creating her own team, yes, but the formation and name will come later, though your guesses, interesting as they are, aren't close, I'm afraid. She included the first years because those are the people she is most familiar with and believes most capable of living up to her standards – the twins have their prior magic training, Kaemon has prior martial arts experience and 'the right attitude'. The Atlanteans have their lost logia under control, but then that's what Al Hazred thought. They may be as good as they think they are, or they may be just as bad as Hayate fears. Which it is will be determined in the story. Yosho's reaction was supposed to be along the lines of 'can't believe Hayate killed them', sort of a short-hand way of explaining that Deva magic is as odd to them as their magic is to Hayate, which differences will of course play their parts going forward. The quote at the end apparently did precisely what it was supposed to do, and confused people as to who is going to come out of this one – though remember, the entire Nanoha franchise has a habit of not killing off villains. Still can't speak for StrikerS, but the only casualties from the first two seasons were Precia (effectively a suicide) and Reinforce (a martyr). Szash's character will become clearer as the story goes on, as will Yosho's. The Akira who is running around should probably be called 'Akira II' – remember, at the end of Path of Vengeance, Takashi explained the original had 'erased himself'. Takashi then recreated Akira in response to the Circles' probes of Hayate's defenses in Academy Blues. It's complicated, and the two are quite deliberately very similar, but not the same. Even if they were the same, it would have been exceedingly difficult for Akira to detect Kriegsen – remember, the renegade Admiral has decades of experience hiding his real emotions and activities, he knows how to hide his magic. The Bureau problem is currently planned for next chapter. I think you'll appreciate it, though I don't know if you'll approve, given how complicated it is.

Ray Venn Hakubi: Your reaction is just the sort I was looking for in Kriegsen's disguise. I originally meant to try and keep it secret longer, but dancing around it was getting annoying. Now I can torture you all with scenes where no one has any idea who he is at what time and what he's actually up to...:). It'll be fun dealing with him, though he has several more parts to play.

Advent000: The Atlanteans are arrogant, but they have reason to be. They're supposed to be like the Chinese when the Europeans arrived, or like the Victorian era British – an old, powerful society that is very sure of itself. As for keeping the Bureau occupied, that should be in the next chapter, as well as some initial responses.

Skyfall v2.0: Glad you look forward to my stories, and sorry for the delay. I claim distraction, this time – inspiration on other stories. Wilhelm is a sneaky, twisted old bastard, and yes, he is still pursuing his 'vengeance' (I do believe you're the first to comment that the old title matches him, as well as Akira/Takashi, thanks!). The conflict between Atlantis' expectations and the modern world will be one of, but not the only driver in this story. There are actually four such conflicts in my notes: Atlantis, Terra, the Circles and Hayate, none of them quite able to deal with one another. Blocking the Bureau is too important to avoid, mostly because given Atlantis' basic technologies and attitudes, an un-hindered Bureau would drop everything to bring Atlantis down. As it is, the 'hindering' is complicated, but believable. As I told Kell Shock and Advent000, it'll start next chapter. You are entirely right about there being officers who would ignore 'trouble' in favor of helping Terra, but that's going to be complicated by several factors. As for the independent factions, meh. I know they're out there, but the Bureau problem would actually cover them, as well, even if they were from As or the original series. As for your reading of the two 'future quotes'... you're right, they can be read to show either an Atlantean or Terran victory. There will be a few more such quotes, all with a similar multiple-interpretation. Partly, it's because I've already got them written out as 'tags' for myself, and thought it would be neat to share. Partly, because the ones I'm sharing add different twists and foreshadowing to the story. With Wilhelm, remember he's been a Bureau officer for decades, and successfully hid his true feelings from Sara and Takashi well enough to officiate at their wedding. He knows how to keep secrets and how to keep himself hidden and disguised. Admittedly, I should have refreshed his physical descriptions in his scene last chapter, but here's a quick cover – Schuster is short, broad, and bald, while Kriegsen is average height and build (i.e. - not short or broad) and has military-short white hair. Akira would not necessarily recognize his magic, because Kriegsen can suppress it, and has both Deva magic on his own, and his old Midchildan magic through Panzerfaust, neither of which this version of Akira is familiar with. Even Takashi and Hayate would have a hard time noticing, so long as Kriegsen refrained from actually casting any spells while they were present.


	18. 17 Diplomatic Intervention

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-17 – Diplomatic Intervention-

Chrono blinked in surprise as his screen full of force availability reports flashed a priority command conference warning, then his door locked and the screen refreshed, revealing First Admiral Theonides from Investigations. The older man was seated at his own desk, and his normally expressionless face – the model for Chrono's own 'command face' – was set in a deep frown.

"Ah, Admiral Theonides," Chrono managed, "my apologies, I wasn't expecting to hear from you today. What can I do for you?"

Theonides' frown deepened slightly, "I'm afraid, Chrono, that I have some rather unpleasant news."

The combination of expression and statement would have been enough, in most cases, to send their recipient fleeing to the nearest border to avoid Investigations' charges. Chrono had no idea what he might have done wrong, however, and had known Theonides for years, long enough to recognize the understatement. "What's wrong?"

Theonides' expression shifted to one of distaste, before settling back into an approximation of his normal blankness. "I have just signed off from a meeting with the entire High Command. My own presence was required to initiate an internal investigation to determine how certain non-Bureau parties acquired information on operational planning that should have been held as classified."

"Operational planning? You think I have a spy in my sector?"

Theonides shook his head, "I do not yet know. I have been tasked to begin an investigation covering all levels to find out, but have only the initial orders. I only got that order a few minutes ago. However, the reason I am calling you is, you will shortly be receiving operational orders of your own, directly from High Command." Chrono twitched in surprise at that, for High Command never dealt directly with operational matters beyond general, Bureau-wide directives. They provided over-arching guidance and control, not orders. "Specifically, you are going to be ordered to suspend all efforts to intervene on non-Bureau worlds outside of immediate dislocation crisis, including efforts to support former Bureau officers."

The words were so outlandish, so unbelievable, that Chrono did not actually understand them at first. "They're ordering me to do what?"

"Suspend all efforts to intervene on non-Bureau worlds. Don't be foolish, Chrono, you know precisely what efforts they mean – the shifting of forces to Earth to handle their latest crisis."

Disbelief faded fast, followed quickly by anger, which was just as quickly controlled. "Why? You... They _have _to know what just arrived on Earth, I disseminated complete copies of the initial reports to all High Command and Sector commanders with my request for assistance! How can we _not _intervene?"

"Officially," Theonides replied, "as the city has not yet caused a dimensional disturbance, and has in fact sealed one, there is no cause for 'precipitous realignment of forces'. Officially, since the city hasn't exploded yet, High Command feels it would be better to wait and see, especially as the city and the world it is on are outside of Bureau space."

Chrono started to comment on that, but Theonides held up a hand. "_Un_officially, and the reason for my investigation, someone leaked word of your initial plan to the member worlds in your sector. You know there have already been some pro-forma and not so pro-forma complaints regarding your handling of your responsibilities. Those were small matters, however, routine ruffled feathers caused by a new sector commander establishing himself. Normally they would be nothing to even bother you with beyond informational warnings. _Every_ new sector commander faces similar issues their first few years. Still, you are too much an Enforcer to really be diplomatic, and you and your policies have ruffled more feathers than normal, in a sector known to be unruly at best, and this incident is an entirely different animal. The diplomatic situation, for want of a better word, exploded. You know the Bureau's relationship with the member worlds in your sector has never been the most solid. Not bad, not as bad as Larsquin Sector, but not as good as Hykon, either.

"The orders you are about to receive are in direct response to the most recent diplomatic incident. All thirty-four systems in your sector have lodged protests about, in general, 'the Bureau's manifest lack of concern for member world security'. As if that were not bad enough, twenty-two worlds have also sent injunctions threatening to consider withdrawing from the Bureau Charter, and three of those worlds included unofficial notice that their various legislatures are already writing proposals to do just that. Member worlds have lodged protests before, Chrono, but never so many all at once, and no member world has ever conducted an actual legislative debate on secession! This is unprecedented, and frankly, High Command panicked."

As Theonides explained, Chrono could feel his blood boiling. There was a drastic situation on Earth. Prompt response could resolve it in a matter of weeks, at the outside. Failure to act now almost guaranteed a major dislocation, possibly even the destruction of Earth or worse, if Al Hanthis contained as many lost logia as Hayate and Aignu claimed. This was the very situation the Bureau was created to contain and control. High Command had to be fully aware of that, yet they were still going to tie his hands, prevent him from acting now, when it could be done easily with minimal risk. The unofficial reasons were almost secondary to the fact of the orders.

Then came the crowning insult. "Finally, Chrono," Theonides said heavily, "there is the matter of your easy relationship with Yagami Hayate. Too many times she has used her personal connections to bypass the procedures member worlds must follow. To the member worlds, you have given personal favor to an outsider, an admitted criminal, however redeemed, and certain members of the High Command have begun to question your fitness for command. The rumors of your relationship with Admiral Testarossa, another former criminal and an officer under your command, are not helping, legal as it may be. The High Command has worries about nepotism, about using emergency situations to gather power to your own hands. There are not enough worries to bring about an inquiry, not yet, but they are growing in number."

He held up a hand to cut off protest, but Chrono almost ignored that. Ever since his father died, he had prided himself on his impeccable self-control, but that was frayed now. _How dare they insult Fate like that, or Hayate?! How dare they question me like this?! I've never even come close to breaking procedure!_ He could feel his temper raging, and just this once, was very tempted to let it loose.

"Chrono, I understand," Theonides continued, "Truly, I do. All of us invited to the meeting defended you and your actions, even Foch." Surprise held Chrono for a second, as Admiral Foch in Personnel had argued long and hard against Chrono's promotion. "We all understand how you feel. Frankly, none of us would be surprised or think less of you if you resigned over this. Lords know, I would consider it. But what you cannot do is let your anger guide you. You never have before, but the stakes are much higher now.

"This order comes directly from the High Command, under unanimous vote. If you attempt to break it, circumvent it, undermine it, you will be removed from command, Chrono. You may not face a Board, but I would not bet on that leniency. The threat of worlds seceding has frightened High Command like I have never seen. But they are not stupid, nor are they blind. They have to balance the possibility of a dislocation against the probability of member worlds seceding, and from their perspective, the decision makes sense. Al Hanthis is not going to explode this second. Even if they do wind up getting into a battle on Terra, Hayate should be able to limit it, if she can't stop it. In a few weeks, a month or two at most, the member worlds will be placated, and you can move in then. Until then, you have to be careful. You cannot break this order, Chrono, not even a little bit. If you do, the consequences, for you and your people, including Hayate, will be far worse."

Chrono recognized the good advice, and the strategist in him accepted it, but... "I won't break the orders, Theonides. I never have, I see no reason to start now. But I cannot speak for my officers and personnel, not on this. This is a slap in the face to all of them, a direct insult from High Command itself, a violation of our very purpose. I'll issue the order, I'll enforce it, but... I am an officer of the Time Space Administration Bureau. We are trained from the beginning to follow our consciences, and I will not deprive my officers of their right to do just that."

"I understand, and I'll cover for you and them as best I can over here at Investigations. Just be careful, Chrono."

"I will be. Is there anything else?"

"I'm sending you a list of the member worlds involved and how far each has gone, my own immediate analysis of where the most critical problems are. It's not exhaustive, and I'm sure you'll have better ideas, but it's a start. I'd focus on Shander's Folly, Oira, and Tadeine, those are the three that have taken up proposals to secede."

"Shander's Folly and Oira are no worry," Chrono replied, "they were never happy to be under the Charter, anyhow. Didn't Shander's Folly join under duress in the first place? But Tadeine... that's a surprise. They're near the Badlands, there's enough strangeness out there that they're fully aware of how much they need the Bureau."

"But they're also stubborn and paranoid, and feeling neglected in the face of all those threats. My guess is this is a publicity stunt on their part, to try and get some more attention and protection from the Bureau. It's an excuse on the part of Shander's Folly and Oira. You know we never really stamped out the black market and illicit magic experimentation in those systems. Their governments, especially Shander's Folly, still turn a blind eye to a trade in lost logia, a trade they only admit to when we catch them. Hell, some of them even participate in the market! They'd love an opportunity to both escape Bureau oversight and make contact with a treasure trove like Al Hanthis."

Chrono nodded, "Still doesn't change the fact of these orders."

"Just don't break them, Chrono," Theonides reminded him one last time. "Remember, you cannot let ships go to Earth. Now, though... I need to go try to find a spy, so I can do some unmentionable things to him before handing him over to High Command. I'm almost sorry for the bastard, actually. Whatever I do to him is going to pale in comparison to what they do. They're livid, and not just about you. Keep it together, Chrono, and try to keep those hellions of yours from destroying too much, this time."

00000

Amy's first hint that something was seriously wrong was when the priority call completely bypassed her to go direct to Chrono. Only a few people could do that, such as Hayate or Nanoha, less because of Chrono's position than because of Amy's skill. Most of them did not use that privilege, if only because they were usually old friends of Amy's as much as Chrono's, and usually callers at least took the time to say hello. This time, however, the call not only bypassed her, but locked his office under a command conference flag.

That was unusual, but not unheard of. Normally such conferences were arranged before hand, but she could recall two incidents where they had not been – a sudden crisis over in Toulion Sector, and the February incident on Earth, both of which required unified response from the Bureau's higher ranks. To be honest, Amy had been half-expecting such a call since the first alert signals came through from Earth, and was actually looking forward to getting back out into space herself. She had no doubt Chrono would take personal command of the response forces, traditions be damned.

The conference was painfully short however, and Chrono's response was completely unexpected. She was getting up to go see what High Command wanted, when her staid, calm, controlled commander shouted something unintelligible but foul, and – based on the sound and shaking of the panel – _threw_ something at the door hard enough to dent the tough plastic clean through to the outside. For a few seconds, Amy could only stare at the door in shock, even as she could hear Chrono continuing to rant in his office. It was so utterly atypical of him, so completely outside her experience, that she was at a complete loss for how to respond.

She was still standing there when triggered the intercomm, and in a frighteningly controlled voice said, "Amy, please step into my office."

Her reaction to the orders from High Command was rather less violent than his, but actually somewhat louder. Chrono let her rant for a few minutes, before reminding her that he had been over that ground all ready. Then he apologized for his own temper, which made her feel worse, until he distracted her with duty. "The order is for me alone, but I want copies of it distributed to every ship and post commander in the sector, with information copies to the other Sector Commanders. Before you send it out, though... have Nanoha, Fate and Yuuno report to my office. Tell them it's a critical matter about Earth, but not what. I'll tell them."

Amy almost offered to do it, knowing how he already felt like he was betraying Nanoha and Fate. But she also knew he would refuse, so she nodded. "I'll contact them first."

"We'll have to recall the ships we already dispatched as well," he continued, still staring at the order on a small floating screen. "But not the _Shiva_. According to this travesty, we're supposed to 'monitor' the situation, so Aignu can do that from orbit."

"She won't be happy about that, Chrono-kun," Amy reminded him, "but I don't think she'll break orders. Fate-chan, though..."

"I'll talk to her, though I doubt even Mother could keep her from doing something stupid." He paused, and his eyes went wide, "Oh, crap... Mother. She retired to Uminari City."

"She'll be available to help Hayate, then," Amy said. "I'm sure she'll be fine. They all will be." Chrono nodded, but he was back to brooding at the order. Amy gave him a few moments, before clearing her throat, "Um, Chrono-kun? You're planning something, aren't you?"

Chrono glanced at her, then smiled slightly. "I'm looking for a way around this. Something's teasing at the back of my mind. Don't try to talk me out of it, Amy. You know I'm right."

Amy shook her head, "I would never do that, sir. I just thought you might like some help. I may not be a grand strategist such as yourself, but two minds _are _better than one, and you still don't really understand politics."

Chrono snorted, then admitted, "True, true. All right what's bugging me is, why was Theonides so focused on the three worlds actively considering seceding? And why Shander's Folly and Olia over Tadeine? There's something there I'm missing, something he was suggesting without saying it."

Amy thought it over herself for a moment, trying to find a common link between the three worlds. All that occurred to her, however, was, "Shander's Folly and Olia were coerced into signing the Charter. Shander's Folly actually took years to convince, even after their crazy experiments caused a second full dimensional dislocation. Maybe something about that? But Olia never had a full dislocation, they were only risking one."

Chrono nodded at first, then blinked and hesitated. "Forced into the Bureau."

"You can't think to force Earth into the Bureau, can you? They don't even have a unified world government, yet!"

"Not force Earth in, no," Chrono shook his head, "but Theonides said, 'you cannot let any ships go to Earth'. Not 'cannot send', 'cannot _let_'. Where's the file for Shander's Folly, the overview?"

Amy brought up a screen of her own, rifling mentally through the database of inhabited systems quickly, then copied the display so they could both read. "Shander's Folly. Small population, less than three hundred million, mostly miners and farmers. Advanced magic use for such a small world, but with a long history of dislocations and instabilities. Among the ten worst damaged worlds still habitable, with a record number of energy-releasing instabilities, including the third largest permanent instability known. Only the Xirigo Rift and the Badlands are larger. Joined the Bureau fifty-two years ago, under threat of force of arms from the Bureau, after their second dimensional dislocation in ten years wiped out a city of fifty million and almost shattered the planet."

"That's it!" Chrono actually looked excited, almost scary as he started to smile. "That's what he meant. Amy, this has to be official."

She gave him a questioning glance, but he just gestured, so she woke the office's recorders and brought up a Command Directive form on her own display. "Go ahead, sir."

"Captain, you will forward to all Bureau ships and member worlds in this sector for immediate action the following Operational Directive. Due to repeated and willful instances of dimensional instabilities up to and including dimensional dislocations, and given the current deliberate use of known-dangerous lost logia up to and including multiple Tier One artifacts, the planet Earth is hereby placed under full interdict and blockade. Any vessel or personnel attempting to leave Earth is to be seized and held, pending imprisonment and trial of personnel and disposal of vessels and artifacts. Any vessel or personnel attempting to travel to Earth will similarly be seized. Use of force, up to and including full combat status and lethal sanction, is authorized for any vessel enforcing this interdict and blockade. Said interdict and blockade to remain in force until such time as Earth forgoes the use of lost logia, surrenders said artifacts to Bureau jurisdiction, and signs the Bureau Charter as a full member world. End directive."

Amy could only stare at him after the second sentence, she certainly did not manage to note down the official copy of the order. "Can... can we do that?" She had some vague recollections of previous interdicts, historical records, but had no idea if one had been enforced in her lifetime.

Chrono's smile was positively vicious, which was almost as frightening as his earlier display of temper. "Our orders are quite specific. The second section states that no ship is to approach Earth. The order does not say it is limited to Bureau ships under my orders. It specifically says, 'no ships'."

"But, an interdict... Chrono-kun, those are..."

"It's a stretch, but it's valid," Chrono admitted. "Regardless, it's sector orders, and Aignu will enforce it for us. The hard part is going to be keeping any of our own people from crossing it. In fact... go ahead and write up the order, but don't issue it yet. Give me until after I've talked to Nanoha and Fate. I can't try to keep them from Earth, so we'll issue the order after they've had a chance to decide." He sighed and leaned back in her chair, "get them for me first."

00000

That meeting with his old friends went worse than Chrono expected, though anyone who did not know them would not have thought so. There was no yelling, only a little shouting, and no signs of violence. A lot of tears, but nothing in the way of recriminations. Nanoha was confused and hurt, Yuuno silent and hurt, Fate silent and worried. Fate said nothing at all, which worried Chrono the most, until he realized she was communicating telepathically with Nanoha and Yuuno. Nanoha just kept asking why, in tears over the betrayal and worry for her homeworld. None of them made the least hint of blaming him, or thinking he could have done better or could do anything other than what he had. Nanoha actually told him it was not his fault, and thanked him for taking the time to tell them personally.

He felt like a complete heel when they left, and once again found himself seriously contemplating joining them, walking away from his entire life. There was no question what they were going to do, only a question of timing and method.

Sure enough, two hours later, a trio of high-priority forms were delivered to Amy's desk, and she wordlessly brought them to Chrono's attention. He studied each in turn, then shook his head. "Those three... they never did figure out how to handle paperwork."

Amy sniffed, "like you really know how. Besides, those are final enough."

"Not yet they're not," Chrono smirked as he checked each again, feeling the beginnings of the thrill he usually got as a clever tactical solution occurred to him. "Do me a favor, backdate some leave-of-absence forms for each of them, then hide these."

"Chrono..."

"They only sent them to me, Amy," he said. "They're not official until they get to Personnel. And you're not going to send them to Personnel until you absolutely have to according to the letter of the regs, are you?"

She gave him a small grin, and nodded, "It looks like you're finally learning, sir. That's downright underhanded! I don't think Nanoha, Fate or Yuuno will wait around that long, though."

Chrono shook his head, "No, they won't. I would be willing to bet they're packing their critical stuff right now, and they'll leave messages asking us to handle the final details. So, while they're doing that, do me a favor and put together the proper forms for each of them to request extended leaves of absence. I can approve Fate's and Nanoha's, and I can probably talk Admiral Esoran over in Personnel into approving Yuuno's. I'll need them fast, though, or those three'll slip out of here and be on Earth before I can catch them."

"You have a plan, Chrono-kun?"

He nodded slowly, "the beginnings of one, yes. Three Bureau officers using personal time to observe a situation as 'neutral parties' are hardly my responsibility. And if they run into trouble, well, all Bureau officers are required, by their oath of service and standing regulations, to aid fellow officers, on duty or not, so I can't really stop Aignu from going to their assistance. If the Al Hantheans take it as Bureau-wide action and retaliate as I would expect, well, that's an act of war, now isn't it? It'll take a lot of finagling and fast-talking, especially with the interdict, but it will give me a way around this damn non-intervention order. It may still cost me my job, but it'll be almost impossible for anyone to stop, once it gets going. Go get those forms written up, please."

It took him two hours to track the trio down. By the time Amy had the forms ready for him, they had already left Nanoha's and Yuuno's apartment. Fate had cleaned out her cabin on the _Asura_ in record time, though he suspected she had never actually used it but had cooked up some sort of Midchildan variation on Takashi's 'in-device' pocket dimension. They were literally in the hall to a teleport bay when he came storming up behind them, a scattering of other people around making this far more public than he had intended.

Realizing he was not going to be able to catch them before they were in the bay, he shouted, "Nanoha! Fate! Hold it right there you two!" The trio froze, and he thought they actually cringed. _Yep, no doubt there,_ he muttered mentally, _they're trying to skip out without talking to me. Call me vindictive, but I think I'll mention it to Mom, let her read them the riot act._

By the time they turned to face him, somewhat after everyone _else _in the hall, they were collected and ready, faces set in resolve. Chrono matched that with a glare of his own, before continuing, "Dammit you two, I have told you and told you, you can't leave all your paperwork to Amy anymore! She has her own work!" Shoving the data slate into Fate's hands, he continued right on with the 'lecture' while grabbing Nanoha and Yuuno and pulling the entire group into a seating alcove. "I got your requests, yeah, sure, fine, but you used the wrong forms again! And they're incomplete! Gods above, you two are good, but you're driving me crazy! Amy and I can't keep babying you!"

It was not until they were in the alcove, with a modicum of privacy, that Fate got herself back together. "Chrono-kun... what is this?" She held up the slate, looking more confused than anything. "We aren't going on vacation."

"Vacation?" Nanoha at least did not sound angry, "we resigned, Chrono! I know we did, we were never _that _bad at paperwork!"

"We used the right forms," Yuuno added, "since I filled them out for all three of us."

"And you sent them to the wrong person," Chrono told him, "and thank all that's holy for that."

Fate's confusion faded into a suspicious glare, "You're up to something, aren't you?"

He smirked at her, before pulling her in close with an arm over her shoulder. "I'm looking at ways to get myself a nice showy court-martial for humiliating the entire Bureau. Want to help?"

"You should come with us, Chrono," Nanoha said. "You know the High Command's betrayed the charter, betrayed Hayate, betrayed all of us. We could use you, and your mother would be happy to see you."

Chrono shook his head. "The Bureau has screwed up, yes," he admitted, "but it isn't gone yet. It can still be redeemed, but someone has to stay here and do it. You three should go, yes. I wish I could go with you. But I can do more good here finding ways past the High Command's order. One of those is you three. If you leave now, if you resign in protest like you tried to, the Bureau will write you off. If, however, you are simply vacationing on your homeworld – and remember, Fate listed Terra as her homeworld after Mother retired there – well, the Bureau is supposed to go to the aid of officers that get in trouble for no fault of their own.

"Then there's this, if you're on leave of absence, I can at least give you information, take reports, help with planning even if I can't be there physically. If you resign, all I can give you is the PR department. The same restrictions apply to Aignu. I told you, I'm placing Earth under interdict, which Aignu will be enforcing and monitoring. If you're on leave there, she can skate some stuff past the interdict to keep 'on-site personnel' from being 'overwhelmed by local conditions' or something."

"I understand, Chrono," Nanoha said, smiling sadly at him, "but I'm not coming back. If the High Command can do this... they aren't the High Command I swore to serve. I joined the Bureau to protect people, and now they're forcing me to let my friends and family fight, maybe die, for politics. I can't come back."

"I understand," he told her, "and I agree with you. When this is over, I'll see to it that all three of you are allowed to retire with honor. But I need you to stay on now. Please. I'm not ordering you, I'm asking you, as a friend. I know we've betrayed your trust, but I need your help to fix it. Please."

They were silent for a few moments, Yuuno and Fate watching Nanoha. Then she nodded. "All right, Chrono-kun. We'll help. But we're not staying here. Hayate needs our help, even if the Bureau won't provide it."

"Not asking you to," he reassured her, as Fate signed off on the forms Amy had prepared. While Nanoha and Yuuno did the same, Chrono pulled Fate further to one side. "Fate-chan..."

She smiled at him, "Don't worry, Chrono. We'll be fine. We won't let anything happen to Okaa-san, or Hayate, or Earth. It'll be good to have Asura's Pride back together again, though it would be better if you were with us."

"You know I can't, not yet. Just..." he hesitated a second, then pulled her into a hug and asked, "just tell Hayate I'm sorry?"

Fate nodded, then kissed him lightly, and the trio was gone, leaving him to make his way back to his office. It hurt, letting them go, not going with them, but he had told them the honest truth. Someone had to stay here and save the Bureau from itself.

00000

Hayate was rather glad, in the two days following Al Hanthis' appearance, for Aignu's presence. The Admiral took a large amount of the responsibility for talking to the various governments and the Al Hantheans. Given what Hayate had to deal with after that assistance, Hayate was almost afraid of what it would have been like without Aignu's support. Because Hayate was well known and generally considered honest, if not liked, many governments still contacted her, as much to confirm Aignu's position as anything else.

It seemed, at times, that the one person who had not contacted her was the one she most needed to talk to. After that short call following her meeting in Al Hanthis, she had not heard a thing from Hughes. News reports had told her he went to the White House just as he told her, but after that, nothing beyond the US government's – and most other governments' – official position of 'wait and see, it's an Egyptian matter right now'.

She was contemplating the necessity of calling him, when the perimeter wards triggered. It was only the outer wards, and the non-hostile ones, warning beacons, but it was a good excuse to avoid an uncomfortable conversation. So she brought up a screen and patched through to Zafira, who had the watch. "What's happening, Zafira?"

He quirked his eyebrows at her, rotating one ear, "Bored, Mistress?"

She smiled back, "putting off unpleasantness."

"Actually, I think you just failed at that, Mistress. Journeywoman Maunders is standing at the lookout, apparently alone. There is a vehicle parked at the lookout that has no other life-readings in it."

"Maunders?" Hayate frowned at that, "why would she be here without warning? Especially now? The monthly update isn't for another week or so, and Hughes mailed the last one."

"I couldn't say, Mistress," Zafira replied. "I am not her, after all. Would you like me to go meet her?"

"No," Hayate shook her head, then smiled slightly, "Yussef is in Signum's class at the moment I believe, please ask him to escort her down to my office." Zafira's eyebrows went higher, so she explained, "I'm curious how he will handle himself, Zafira. Maunders is a former enemy, and a potential threat. Noriko is too well trained by her family to be anything other than polite and diplomatic, and Laura would not even think to be worried. But Yussef... I am curious how he will handle himself. We'll both keep an eye on it, of course, but have him go up."

Hayate switched the screen to observation, breaking it into two, one following Yussef, the other following Maunders. Until Yussef reached the overlook, Hayate focused on Maunders, studying the woman. The Sergeant looked perfectly relaxed as she stood waiting at the gate, not even tapping her foot, hands clasped behind her back, occasionally looking around. She was carrying a large envelope, but it was too thin to hold more than a few pieces of paper.

Yussef, when he arrived, was a little stiff, but basically polite. He had his device out, but stowed on his back. He did nothing insulting, but did make the mistake of letting Maunders walk alongside him, instead of ahead as he should have as a 'guard'. While he kept a hold of his magic, keeping power ready, he had no actual spell prepared. When he and Maunders finally arrived, he started to join them in her office, then remembered to look to her for direction.

"It's all right, Yussef. Why don't you go back to class, I believe Aria has the language lessons going," Hayate told him. He looked doubtful, and she knew precisely what he was 'doubting'. "I'll keep anyone from troubling Journeywoman Maunders."

Yussef's face shifted slightly, as he realized he was being obvious, but he bowed, "Yes, sensei. I'll see you at class?"

"Most likely."

Maunders waited until the door had closed behind him before relaxing from her 'parade rest' and giving Hayate a sardonic look. "Kid's not bad, but he needs some work. Not quite thorough enough for a dangerous enemy like me, not quite polite enough for diplomatic herd-dog. Close, but not quite."

Hayate returned the smile, "Somewhat what I was thinking, and what I wanted to find out about him. We'll work on it. Have a seat, Journeywoman. I must admit to some curiosity, I would have expected Hughes to contact me directly, and a little sooner."

Maunders took a seat, settling the envelope in her lap. "I'm not surprised he hasn't contacted you, ma'am, even without this," she tapped the envelope. "It arrived for me via FedEx yesterday evening, and my Colonel was good enough to give me the day to come down here. Officially, I'm supposed to pick up some 'sensitive documents' regarding Atlantis' reappearance. Mostly, I'm here to drop this off, since Hughes wanted me to, and to wait for your answer." So saying, she reached out and placed the envelope on Hayate's desk.

Hayate considered it for a moment. It had already been scanned by the perimeter wards, but she performed a second, subtler, scan now, finding only the vaguest hints of magic – just enough to be accumulation from proximity to Hughes. The envelope had not been sealed, and inside were three sheets of paper – a map and two letters. The first was short, to the point, and addressed to her.

--Hayate

--I've been given an opportunity to meet with several Revenant leaders at one of Containment Division's facilities south of Yellowstone National Park, in three days from this note. You'll see the location on the map, though I suspect that is simply a way-point from which we'll be moved to the actual base. It's an attempt to end the civil war in favor of uniting against Atlantis. I can't say how well it will turn out, but I want you there, to discuss the possibility of your own or your Bureau's intervention.

--You and any of your people that you bring will have my personal guarantee of protection, as well as Containment Division's general safe-passage for the duration of the meeting. The second letter is a safe-conduct for you. Containment has usually provided neutral ground for internal Circle disputes, no one will violate their promise of safe passage, and it was quite specifically made 'safe passage to all who might visit our facility'. Patently, Containment would like you there as well, though they did not say as much.

--Hughes.

"Well, this is quite the odd request," Hayate muttered.

"Rather odd, ma'am," Maunders agreed, "but not really surprising, if you think about it. You're bad enough, from our standpoint, but you aren't nightmares made flesh. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, after all. Keeping his other enemies guessing is probably why this came by such a round-about method. It was part of an official Army packet, so fewer people watching it."

Hayate shook her head, "I am not an enemy of Al Hanthis yet, Journeywoman. So far, the only 'wrong' they have done is seizing Bureau and Circle personnel upon their arrival, which was nothing more than prudence, given their history. They even corrected and apologized for that error."

Maunders grimaced, "They're the Lords of Light, ma'am. They'll be real polite and diplomatic, right up until they shove an enchanted knife in your back and bind your soul."

"Like I would have?"

Maunders twitched at that, started to protest, then shook her head. "I can't really explain it, but you're wrong. Even back then, when you first showed up, we would have ignored you in the face of the Lords. It's not a matter of 'not talking to them', it's a matter of 'long proven history'. Look at the Seed. You don't make something like that if you're planning to be a nice neighbor, especially not in the numbers they have."

"True," Hayate agreed, "and I don't trust them particularly either, especially given their... starting negotiating stance. Remember, they are related directly to Al Hazred, the Bureau's historical version of your Atlantis myths. The Al Hantheans even claim Al Hazred was their colony! No, I don't trust them. But I'm also not willing to simply condemn them all out of hand."

Maunders shrugged, "hope you're right, but I doubt it. At the least, however much they want to make nice, the Revenants will do something stupid. You won't be seeing every faction at that meeting, and even some of those you will see are only there for a chance to bitch at Hughes. Some of them have to be planning something even now. Not the smart ones, not like those bastards that suckered us in Shanghai, but the quicker ones. The one's who don't really care about casualties, like the Italian Ops boys that went Revenant, or some of the South Asians."

"How long do you think it will be before they try something?"

"Any day now," Maunders replied, sounding almost irritated. "I'm almost wishing they would try something, the waiting is getting aggravating. The sooner something happens, the clearer it all becomes, and the sooner we can _do _something."

"You so expect 'something', that the lack of it is unbearable?" Hayate actually chuckled at that and shook her head, "the sad part is, I feel similarly. A Sword of Damocles hangs over our heads, and I seem to be the only one who hopes it won't fall."

"Hope and expectation aren't the same things, ma'am," Maunders replied. "Call me a pessimist, but..."

"Plan for the worst, yes. In that case, if you be so kind as to let Hughes know I will accept his offer, and will meet him at the site at... dawn?"

"I'll find out the actual meet time, but that sounds likely to me, ma'am."

The two of them spent a short time discussing what Hayate could expect at the meeting, mostly procedures and what to be wary of with the Containment people. Maunders could not offer much beyond, 'be careful, they're really strange', but even that was useful, in its way. Half an hour later, Hayate escorted Maunders back to the overlook, waiting until the woman had driven out of sight before turning back. It was almost lunch time, so Hayate elected to walk back down, and was halfway to the dorm and cafeteria when Zafira contacted her again.

_'Mistress? Chrono is on a channel, he says he needs to speak with you immediately.'_

Pausing on the path, Hayate asked, _'Can you route it to the Sword? I'll use it to generate a screen.'_

A small screen opened next to her, at a comfortable height, and Hayate resumed walking, "Hello, Chrono-kun. It's good to see you again."

Chrono's serious face darkened at that, almost as if he flinched. "I hope you still feel that way in a few minutes. Nanoha, Fate and Yuuno are on their way out to you now, I would be obliged if you could put them up. They'll be more useful to you at the school than at Nanoha's parents' place."

Sensing that something was seriously wrong, Hayate paused, frowning at the screen. "Why would I need to put them up? The _Asura_..." even as she said the name, she realized Fate would never leave her ship at a time like this, "... isn't coming, is it?"

"No," Chrono whispered, "no, it isn't. I'm afraid all I have for you now is bad news and worse."

00000

Kriegsen was surprisingly generous, for such a nebulous contract. Once Yosho told him the deal was agreeable, and had escorted the former Bureau Admiral to a portal generator, he held up a small data-crystal. "Your files, Lord Protector."

Yosho did not touch the extended crystal, instead letting his aide hold open a case for Kriegsen to drop the crystal in to. If any of them noticed the small flare of magic just as the case closed, none of them commented. It made sense, after all, for the case to be specially warded, and for any traps Kriegsen laid to discharge as those wards sealed.

Half the city away, standing at the open rail of a small park, Szash smiled as the crystal settled into her hand. The portals were routinely monitored, but only but automatic sensors that recorded nothing. Those sensors fed carefully non-sentient programs that parsed the data, determined if a criminal or dangerous activity was under way, and notified the proper authorities of any discrepancies. No one monitored them directly, both for privacy and work-load reasons, but very few people remembered that those sensors could be _directly _monitored. Only Lord Protector Yosho could do it without the Conclave's approval, except in time of war, a state which may or may not exist at present, as the Conclave had never declared an end to the war against the rebels.

"Very good, Gali, my thanks," she said, "Eri, is your agent ready for the replacement?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good," Szash turned and strolled over to join her lieutenants, "then let's get this copied, modified, and on its way back to its owner, shall we?"

Gali had the portable station set, taking the crystal from her gingerly and fitting it into a universal port. It took the station fifteen seconds – rather longer than usual – to determine proper read/write protocols, and then the data was displayed. The station, connected to the Guard's primary processors deep within the city, quickly sorted the data into usable form, and a minute after Gali loaded the crystal, it was ready.

While Gali initiated the copying process, Eri performed a fast check of the information. "What changes do you want to make, General?"

"Nothing too obvious," she said. "Focus on the school. Remove any references to knowledge about us or the colonies except for those they've already demonstrated. The only one who knows our language is the translator-construct. Only the teachers know anything about our technology, and that knowledge is spotty and error-prone. If you have time, extend that lack of knowledge to the rebels, as well. Nothing more than that, though."

"Yes, ma'am."

The two operated in silence for a few minutes, Eri's modifications just behind Gali's copying as she edited the crystal. By the time they were done, the original crystal would be ever so slightly different. Nothing that would stand out, no changes that would make Yosho nervous, just enough that Szash would be able to provide 'over-cautious warnings' that, when they turned out to be true, would slash Yosho's prestige and power considerably.

"General?" Gali looked up and gestured at his display, "I think I've found our three best candidates."

"That fast?" Szash leaned over his shoulder and gave the three synopses a glance. "All students at the school? One of the rebels would be better, don't you think?"

"I'll need to do a detailed analysis, but these look good at the moment. The rebels are fractured, and their deployable power is probably lower than it was before they sabotaged the lifting engines," Gali countered. "Yagami and her people are another matter. If the scans from her visit are accurate, none of them have any implants at all, but their individual potential through-put is actually slightly higher than ours. I'll put together a formal report in the next day or so, but I'm going to recommend we put more emphasis on team-combat than individual, for when Yagami and her people go on the attack. So, given the relative power levels and who's probably going to be leading the rebel's battle-force, the kids are our best bet. Close enough to be knowledgeable, new enough to be vulnerable. These three are all orphans, two of them traumatically, and we all know how these barbarians treat orphans."

"All right," Szash muttered, "give me a full write up each of them and how we go about it."

Eri chimed in, "Edits are done, ma'am."

"Copying is almost finished," Gali added, "ten seconds."

"Eri, get ready for your contact," Szash ordered. The instant the copying was done, the crystal popped out and Szash snatched it, the same motion sending it to Eri in a gentle under-hand. Eri caught it, and a flash of power later the crystal was gone, several floors down and several towers over.

Eri's eyes went unfocused for a moment, then she nodded sharply and smiled. "Done. Contact has the package. Delivery should be in the next five minutes."

"Pass on our thanks," Szash said. She had no idea who Eri's contact was, and never did. It was safer that way, for the contacts and for her, but it made her nervous sometimes, never quite sure if those contacts were safe. She trusted Eri completely, but could not quite trust whoever Eri's contacts and agents were. Still, this felt like a job well done, which required attention to detail. "Gali, make sure the translation protocols for the crystal stays in our local system. We don't want Yosho getting suspicious if the computer reads the crystal instantly."

00000

Kell Shock: Thanks for the corrections, both are fixed. The first was supposed to read 'appeared in his _**h**_and', and yeah, 'lose' instead of 'loose'. Kriegsen is obsessed with Takashi (more specifically, _destroying _Takashi), in a manner that will become clear in future chapters. Thing is, 'obsessed' doesn't mean non-functional. He is roughly that crazy, but also very much that skilled at deception and politics. It's in direct action that he lacks experience and skill.

Advent000: The Bureau's initial problems are detailed above – seriously underhanded diplomatic manipulation and the High Command choosing caution over action. Nanoha's, Yuuno's and Fate's reaction is far from the last or worst, though. I will admit there is more in-fighting in Al Hanthis than I originally planned, but it's the sort of thing a closed society like that would fall into, and it's provided a good explanation for some future events I was having trouble justifying. Mariachi's idea has potential, but each of the kids will have surprises for Al Hanthis and the Circles.

Seaotter: Aignu's sentence is correct, just very convoluted, and I probably should have used Hassed's name in there to clarify. Apologies, it's how I hear her talking. Kriegsen's definitely got some screws loose, and the grudge has gotten worse over the years – being dishonorably discharged and imprisoned after decades of getting away with murder, while your target gets off Scott-free, has to be tough on the mind. Cid-chan's not so much 'interested in gore' and 'fascinated by biology'. I've known one person like her, a biologist-type who couldn't stand the thought of using a scalpel on someone, but had no trouble talking about the grossest diseases and processes over dinner – naturally, said person's one of the bases for Cid-chan:). Al Hanthis is definitely a duplicitous place, for a lot of reasons that should become clear as the story progresses. As for their power levels – note Gali's comments above. Details will be explained in later chapters, but the Al Hantheans gain effects similar to a mage-device from cybernetic implants.

Fidelas: Yep, last chapter was the third step of Mariachi and Cid-chan. Ups and downs to come, there. I'm glad you liked the previous two stories, though I have to admit I'm now unhappy with Path of Vengeance. I can see improvements in my own writing since then, and I've been half-tempted for a while to go back and re-write PoV. The first years are a little bare, but they'll have some more interactions and growth in future chapters. I'll probably have to save any serious work with them for the Side Stories, though. Thanks for the review!


	19. 18 Drumroll

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-18 – Drumroll-

Noriko was just finished changing for Laura's extracurricular course when there was a pounding on her door. Snugging the gi tight, she used a twist of magic to open the door, while picking up Senbonzakura where it waited on her desk. Unsurprisingly, Laura burst through the door, but rather than come bouncing over, she bounced around the door and slammed it shut, slumping against it.

For a second the two just stared at each other. Noriko took careful note of Laura's wide-eyed expression, rapid breath, and jittery air, and decided that something had spooked her. That in itself was a unique occurrence, but not entirely unbelievable. Noriko's first thought was, _it's about time something got to her._ Aloud, she asked, "Is something wrong, Laura-chan?"

Laura blinked at her, then shoved off the door and started pacing, staring at her feet. She did not, however, answer, but rather began hemming and hawing. "Um... well... ah... it's... there's... um..." She made two passes, stuttering but not really speaking, then paused, grabbed Noriko's shoulders, and said in a very small voice, "help!"

Putting a hand on one of Laura's, Noriko answered, "Of course, Laura-chan. With what?"

"With this!" And then Laura was off, pacing much more rapidly, arms flailing, as she ranted, "I have no idea what I'm doing, what I'm _going _to do! I mean, I have ideas, but none of them will work, none of them are right! And I'm supposed to go in there in, like, ten seconds, and just... do it! Teach all of them everything and..."

"Laura-chan! Calmly, Laura-chan," Noriko ordered, trying to intercept her. When that failed, she tried distraction, "Laura-chan, you're floating while you pace. While I supposed it might strike some people as 'Zen', it's hurting my neck. Are you saying you're not ready for tonight?"

"Of course I'm not ready! How could I be ready when nothing will work?!"

"Laura," Noriko finally caught her arm, stopping her pacing. "Seriously, calm down. Take a deep breath, focus." Laura grumbled, but complied, even closing her eyes as she repeated the breath. When she opened them again, she was calmer, at least outwardly. "Good," Noriko continued, "now, if you would please be so kind as to stop floating, and tell me in some detail precisely what is wrong, maybe I can help."

"Yeah, yeah," Laura muttered, and resumed pacing, a little slower but still a good half-meter off the floor. "I literally have no idea what I'm going to do tonight. I've got this grand vision of all of us being the absolute best, being untouchable, samurai in the mythical sense, you know? But the only thing I've got to guide our training is Yussef's class, and that just plain won't work for us. Well, maybe you and K-chan, but not the rest of us. Sensei just told me it was my class and thus my problem, but she also said I already had the answers and should go with my instincts, but I can't see it!"

"You should have come to me sooner than this," Noriko said, turning the situation over in her mind. "Now... all right, tonight is the first session. No one will expect much in the way of lessons, it will be like the first day of any new class – expectations and current status. So, we give them an example of where we want them to end up, then determine where each of them is. Start off with you trying one of Signum-sensei's training programs, then you and I spar – magically as well as physically – and then set them to individual sparring to see where _they_ are."

Laura was shaking her head before Noriko was half finished. "Never work. One little demo, and everyone'll go all scared and defensive..."

"Which is why one of the demonstrations is you and I sparring. First, you alone to show that you know what you're doing..."

"They already know that!"

Noriko very carefully avoided rolling her eyes, "No, they don't. They've heard about it, they've seen you in class, they saw a little in February, and Allison saw a little bit in China. But no one but Signum-sensei has actually seen you at full hue and cry, except for Takamichi-sensei, and she was distracted by her own battle. So, we show them that, prove that you know what you're doing. Then you and I spar, to show both that there is more to it than your way, and that you know how to tone things down to teach, especially if you take the time while we're sparring to point out where I need work. Will it impress them, maybe make them nervous? Yes. But it will prove that you have something to teach them, and that you won't just pound on them. Okay?"

Laura nodded slowly, still looking doubtful. "Yeah, okay, that sounds doable. But it's going to scare all of them off!"

"Just because every reporter with two brain cells is terrified of you doesn't mean we are," Noriko reassured her. "Remember, we know you. Now come on, if we don't get moving we'll be late, and that won't look good for your first ever class, now will it?"

"Um... could you go first?"

Noriko blinked at her, then studied the closed door, wondering at that request. "Why?"

"'Cause the twins are waiting out there at the end of the hall, and Allison and Juliet are in the common room, and K-chan's... well, please?"

Noriko sighed and shook her head. "No. They're your students, it's your idea, you have to face the music. Now come on, my room isn't big enough for you, especially not in one of these moods."

"I'm not that bad," Laura complained, but she opened the door and preceded Noriko out.

Sure enough, Allison and Juliet were waiting in the hall, and the twins were waiting at the door to the quad. None of them said anything, but Noriko could tell from Allison's smirk that she knew something of Noriko's and Laura's discussion, at least in general. Still, none of them said anything as they fell into line behind Laura, who at least managed not to fidget too badly until they reached the classroom building.

They encountered Cidela coming out of a workroom, but the Arabic girl just looked embarrassed and tried to sneak past them. The others looked at Noriko, who merely smiled and nodded to Cidela as they passed, watching her go until Shamal's foundling was out of sight around the corner. Then she looked back at the others and asked, "What?"

"Ah, she came out of the device workroom," Juliet commented. "Shouldn't you be yelling at her?"

Noriko shook her head, "She has Shamal-sensei's permission to work on her device outside of class. She's also close to finished, another couple days if I'm right. Mostly, though, I think she's trying to avoid Mariachi after yesterday's impromptu concert."

"Wait, wait, wait," Allison held up a hand, "we can get permission to work on the devices outside of class? And you were going to tell us this when?"

Noriko shrugged slightly, "Never. None of you are very far behind, you should all finish next week sometime. Other than that, what's the rush?"

"Um, hello, this 'self-study' program," Allison countered.

"Not really," Laura said. "I mean, I'll work you harder once your devices are done, yes, but you don't need one for this class. The twins haven't finished their designs yet, and K-chan hasn't even started, but they're here. At least, he better be. But even before then, a lot of it's mental. Think right, act right, teach yourself the reflexes and patterns that work best for you. You don't need a device for that, a device just gives you more options and a wider safety margin. Now come on, stop hassling Riko-chan and let's get to class."

"Yes, we're going to be late," Noriko agreed, slipping past everyone else to take Laura's arm, and the two of them carried on down the hall, leaving the others griping behind them.

00000

"Signum?"

Without looking away from the screen, she answered, "Yes, Hayate-sama?"

Hayate stepped fully into the watch room, moving to stand behind Signum's chair and look over her shoulder. "Just wondering what you're watching. Ah, Laura's project is starting."

"May be starting," Signum replied with a slight smile. "She is not as organized as Yussef was, though that would not necessarily help with this bunch. She's also much more nervous about it than he was. She finally did what she should have at the start, and went to Noriko for help."

"Hmm, I supposed that is good, but it would have been nice if she asked you."

"She did," Signum replied, "but like Zafira, I am unwilling to teach this class for her. She will learn more leading this class than assisting me. We'll go over it tomorrow while she practices in the sparring circle."

Hayate nodded, though she was uncertain of the wisdom of leaving Laura on her own. Still, she had not interfered in any of her Knights taking personal students, because she knew they saw things she did not and interfaced with their 'apprentices' better than she did. As usual, she trusted her Knights to do their duties. "Are the twins with her?"

"Yes, standing in the back."

"Would you do me a favor? Meet them after class, and tell the twins and Laura that they will be going with me to Yellowstone tomorrow?" Signum slowly turned to look at her, giving her a silent questioning look. "I spoke with Hughes a little while ago. The twins' mother will be there, and I wanted to give them a chance to see her under relatively safe conditions. Laura will be going along to keep them safe, and to remind the Revenants of the dangers of underestimating us. There should not be any combat there, and with the forces at our disposal, the Revenants cannot hope to succeed at an ambush, so it should be safe enough."

"Forces?"

"Nanoha, Yuuno, and Fate will be here later this evening," Hayate told her, "they got held up in Uminari City talking to Lindy-san and Nanoha's parents. So, between me, the two of them, and you, our students should be safe enough."

"You'll forgive me if I worry," Signum replied, "especially since even you going is a bad idea. Bringing the children..."

"Will convince the Circles that we are there to talk, not fight," Hayate interrupted. "Besides, I would be willing to bet that Takashi and Akira will be skulking about as well. You know I won't risk my students. But the twins deserve a chance to talk to their mother again, even if she is 'the enemy'. Their father even agreed with me, and you know how worried about them he is."

Signum's questioning look became even more doubtful, but she turned back to the screen. "I'll let them know, Mistress," she said, "but I'll also take some extra precautions."

"I was hoping you would, Signum. Just because I'm confident this is not a trap doesn't mean I'm taking it lightly. Now, I'm going to go meet Nanoha, Yuuno and Fate. Shamal is readying the guest-rooms now, Vita and Zafira are patrolling the wards one last time. Vita should be in on time to relieve you from the watch."

00000

"Okay, this here's the most complicated simulation the workroom can handle," Laura explained as the force-field structures rose up out of the floor. They were more coherent than what Lotte had used in class, forming actual buildings. "Using the shields and generators, the workroom computers can simulate enemy mages. At the moment, it's reserved for the teachers to use, with one exception. This program was created especially for me by Sensei, and I can bring it up without her. Thing is, it's rather... difficult."

Everyone except Laura was standing on a shield-ledge halfway up the wall over the doors, to have a view of the entire room. Noriko recognized the pattern of the buildings easily. "It's China, isn't it," she said, "your fight with Li."

"Yeah," Laura said, scratching the back of her head. She was already in full armor, floating a couple meters out, and looking distinctly more nervous. "So, it's going to be a little intense, but probably the worst-case scenario. Thing is... it's China. So, I still tend to go a little schizo towards the end. I've put in a safety timer, so when the first two go down, the program will terminate, but... yeah."

"We'll keep it in mind," Allison reassured her. "We all know what you went through last year, I'd be more worried if you weren't still a little freaked by it."

"Yeah, not what I meant," Laura said. "When I said 'schizo' I meant it. Sometimes I freeze, sometimes I go berserk again, first time she pulled it up, last year, I just burst into tears and ran away to hide. So, fair warning. This'll show you the level of skill you'll have when I'm done with you, but if the computer doesn't cut out quick enough, I may go a little schizo. Don't worry about it, Riko-chan'll stop me."

Then she was gone, launching across the room towards three figures. None of the figures were recognizable, beyond 'human', though each was distinct enough to differentiate. The trio separated, the two larger figures moving to intercept Laura while the third held back. They then proceeded to give a fairly intimidating re-enactment of Laura's original battle in China.

Noriko was nervous enough about it to wake Senbonzakura and call up her own armor, letting the first few petals float out a good ways, to give her a better view of the simulation. This was the first she had heard of Laura's reaction to the simulation, though she had known Signum was using it in furtherance of teaching Laura self-control. It was obvious that Laura was very familiar with the tactics in use, probably a standard pattern based on the original battle, with the two subordinates attacking while 'Li' stood back and observed, or at least tried to. Laura was quite obviously bamboozling the 'subordinates' and focusing on taking down 'Li'.

Juliet stepped up next to her, "So, any particular reason Signum-sensei tortures her like this? Making her relive this, it's kinda harsh, don't you think?"

Noriko nodded slowly, "Yes and no. It's a hardening exercise, putting Laura through her worst experience over and over again. She's not nearly as bad about it as she was after February. Had a talk with her brother, he got her through it, but it's still a sore spot, a weakness someone could exploit. What happens the next time she finds herself facing three mages, two attackers and one superior? She could very well 'go schizo' like she mentioned, with far worse results than China. This scenario is designed to get her used to it, so she can keep hold of herself. I am going to ask Hayate-sensei some questions, though. If she's still reacting so strongly to it, there may be something else wrong."

Juliet shuddered. "If you say so. Still seems harsh to me."

"Is it supposed to be this scary? I've sparred with her every week since September, and I can't follow half what she's doing." Kaemon did not actually sound scared, more annoyed.

"She's not showing you techniques, Kaemon," Noriko explained.

"Tactics," Saeryn or Rhys said.

The other twin picked up, "She is demonstrating how to face multiple opponents simultaneously."

"True," Noriko agreed. "Watch how she handles the two aggressors. Distract them with her Bolt Drones, if those fail then she goes with her own buster spells, and finally hand to hand. But whatever she does to them is designed to get them to back off. She is not trying to fight them, she is keeping them out of her way while she tries to take down their leader. Tactics. Focus on the major threat, keep the minor worries busy elsewhere. Either that, or pick off the weaker threats while avoiding the major threat. I would be willing to bet that in China, Laura tried the second option."

"Yeah, she said something like that while we were working on her Cloak of Shades," Allison said. "Personally, I think I'd prefer this tactic. Take down the big fish, the little ones are more likely to scatter."

"There are times when leaving the 'big fish' for last makes sense," Juliet countered. "What if you need him alive? Or if you're trying for a big flashy distraction? What if you aren't sure you can take him?"

"If you aren't sure you can take him, you shouldn't be fighting him," Allison countered, "you should be running." Then she shrugged, "I suppose if, for whatever reason, you can't run and can't fight him, tangling with the little fish would be the smarter way to go. Thing is, that's strictly time-limited. What happens when you're out of little fish?"

"You go down fighting," Kaemon suggested.

"I would suggest, when facing such a battle, that you call for reinforcements," Noriko countered. "That is part of why we are here, after all, to learn how to be each other's reinforcements. Pay attention, though, she almost has the leader down."

Laura's strategy did appear to be paying off, as 'Li' was on the ground in the rubble of a building. The 'subordinates' were at that point falling back from concentrated assault by multiple Bolt Drones. Laura herself was a few feet higher than 'Li', using Escher Step to spin around him while unleashing a hail of punches and kicks. As they watched, the last of the shields she was hitting failed, and lines of white power flowed out of her hands to wrap the simulated mage in a binding. Almost immediately after that, an alarm sounded, and all three enemies vanished in flashes of light, followed a second later by the simulated buildings.

Laura looked distinctly confused for a minute, turning about in mid-air, then shrugged and returned to her audience. "So," she said, "any questions?"

"Yeah," Allison said, "was Noriko right about what you were doing?"

Laura blinked, then cocked an eyebrow at Noriko. "Depends on what she said I was doing." Noriko rolled her eyes, and explained telepathically, to which Laura shrugged. "Yeah, mostly. There's also this, though it's more applicable to the original fight. Odds are meaningless, unless you give them meaning. Three to one, four to one, a million to one, the odds don't matter, not with magic at your back. Magic is too flexible, too powerful, too reliable, for mere odds to sway a battle. A war maybe, a major military assault, sure, but a battle? No. If you think you can take on three to one odds and know what you're doing, then you can. That's what I did in February, that's what I just showed you here, that's what you're going to learn from me. Along with some nasty techniques, hand to hand combat, and some really serious control.

"So, Riko-chan... you ready for round two?"

Noriko sighed, but nodded. "Yes, mostly. What are the rules?"

Laura smirked at her, then turned to the rest. "Pay attention. These are the standard rules whenever any of us spar, no matter the number, no matter how formal. One, nothing fatal. Two, anything else goes." Noriko winced at that, realizing just how relaxed Laura was willing to be, and how far she was planning to go. Laura continued, "Before any of you get all mad at me keep in mind, those are more relaxed rules than Sensei uses with me. She has this extra rule about respecting the teacher and no back-talk. I couldn't care less about that. My version's simpler, so – third rule. If you want to scream at me, punk off to me, or take a swing at me, go right ahead. But there's only one way to be in charge of this class, and that's to take me down in single combat by formal challenge. Clear?"

"Sounds like some sort of old-school trial by combat," Juliet muttered.

"Precisely," Laura agreed. "Don't forget, kiddies, we're here to learn how to engage in battle. That's what I'm going to be teaching you. If one of you can do it better, then you need to be the one up here giving the lectures and what-not. So. Riko-chan?"

Noriko nodded again, jumping off the platform to float out past Laura, "Ready as I'll ever be. Fair warning, though, I am not you. I've only been studying martial arts for a couple of months now."

"Yeah, I know, but you've got all those fancy dancy spells backing you up," Laura countered, floating wide of her, and settling into position. "Though, fair's fair, Riko-chan, take a look at this." She held out both hands in front of her, palms up, "Hicho." A white glow formed above each of her hands, then spread sideways. A second later, a rod of glowing white rested in her hands, capped by a blade the same color. "Isn't he pretty? Some bits from Juliet and Noah, a little sideways thinking, and I've got myself a naginata that won't break, won't get away from me, and won't kill anyone. Like it?"

Noriko looked at it, considering it for a few moments. Then she shook her head, "You and your big sticks, Laura. Sometimes I think you're a boy. Cascade of Spring's Glory." The scattering of petals around her shattered and exploded, swirling up in a moment into a massive cloud, tightly compacted around her. "Whenever you're ready, Laura-chan."

"Allison, call time. Five minutes, no more."

Allison nodded, and flipped her wrist to look at her watch. "Both ready? Go!"

Laura disappeared, mostly, and Noriko reacted defensively. About half of the cloud of petals contracted instantly to a solid sphere around her, while the other half burst away from her, spreading out to fill the area around her for a good twenty meters. That showed her where Laura was, as the petals slipped through Laura's Cloak and still, fuzzily, reported back to Noriko. She shifted stance to face Laura, one fan in lead guard, the other just outside her rear shoulder.

In her eagerness to find Laura, however, she forgot that her friend did not need to attack from her own location. As she was relaxing her shell of petals to turn it towards offense, a Bolt Drone fired on her from behind. A handful of Noriko's petals interposed themselves, failing under the strike but disrupting it enough that it barely kissed her armor. That fist bolt was followed by several more, however, and Noriko had to leave off her thoughts of attack and focus on defense. Between her petals and Senbonzakura's own fans, she was able to avoid or re-direct the bombardment, but lost track of Laura in the process.

Then she noticed a flicker of white and managed to fold at the waist as Laura's energy-naginata flashed past her head. She was halfway through turning around and slashing with one fan before she remembered that, being a good ten meters up, she did not have to worry about hitting the ground, or even standing upright. Then she dropped slightly, before rocketing up, trying to go over where Laura's naginata was on its return swing and get a strike in at Laura. She got nothing but air.

In the two minutes it took Laura to finally pin her to the wall, Noriko realized two things. The first was that, however much she had learned over the summer from Takahata-sensei, she had a lot more to learn about magic battles, things Laura seemed to grasp intuitively. The second was that her petals gave her far more than just all-around view, they let her sense more of what was immediately around her, such as being able to sense them within the vaunted Cloak of Shades.

Laura held her pinned in place, a combination of bindings and naginata, then faded back into view, backed off a bit and grinned, "Sorry 'bout that, 'Riko-chan. You kept surprising me with those petals, took me forever to figure out how to handle them."

"I'm still trying to figure out how you did," Noriko muttered, rolling her shoulders and stretching her neck. She could tell she was going to be sore in the morning just form the sparring. She started flying back towards the others, "Concentrating them, dispersing them, nothing worked."

"Actually, they both worked," Laura replied. "Thing is, you were trying to do too much at once. You should have picked one and stuck with it. Either use the petals for defense and Amaterasu for offense, or use the petals for offense and trust to your armor and auto-defense spells. You also still need time to react, once you see something is happening. Your petals let you notice it, but you have to be faster."

They were close enough by then for Juliet to overhear that and comment, "No one's fast enough to keep up with you, Laura."

"Sensei is, Vita-sensei, Hayate-sensei, Zafira-sensei. You don't want to think about how fast the Lieze twins are. Oh, and remember Tai-yu's lecture on Circle magic? How reliable she said her spells are? Sensei had her show me once, and she can throw out a Buster Cannon level strike like blinking. Admittedly, she wouldn't have time to do that more than twice before I was on top of her, but still. Speed isn't just about reflexes. Anyone else notice anything, before I continue?"

"She wasn't very aggressive," Allison commented, "most of what you tried was defensive, Noriko. Is that how you plan to fight, or were you afraid of Laura?"

Noriko thought that over briefly, before admitting, "A little of both. Laura is very capable, and highly unpredictable, so I was cautious, possibly overly so. On the other hand, a solid, steady defense can wear down an energetic assault. Between the tessenjutsu and my Cascade spell, I will probably always be somewhat more defensive than the rest of you."

"There's also this about a defensive stance," Laura continued, "I burned up a lot more energy than she did, even without using any of my cartridges. Any of you try my sort of free-wheeling fast-moving attack on Noriko's defenses, she'd have a fair chance of holding you off until you were tired enough to make a mistake. Her petals aren't the most efficient shield out there, but just like she said last year, she can flip them from defense to offense in an instant. She can also apparently rely on them to handle some of her defense automatically. Now, in detail, here's where I saw problems with Noriko's performance..."

Noriko was a little embarrassed at how frank Laura was in her criticisms and compliments, but she had received harsher comments from Signum, Vita, and Lotte at various times. The only problem was that Laura was not a teacher, but a fellow student and friend. Still, that was what she was here for, and while Laura delivered her comments – more to the others than to Noriko – Noriko prepared her own critique of Laura's approach, and looked over the others.

_Well,_ she thought, _at least no one looks scared anymore. They're thinking, good._

00000

Tessai stepped onto the bridge with more than a little nervousness. Aignu was a good commander, and he was both honored and happy to work on her ship. But the past days, since the withdrawal and interdict orders had come in, she had been in just as angry a mood as the rest of them. The briefing she had given the entire crew that morning had been... strained, to put it politely. Tessai himself had heard the worst and gotten over his own initial sense of betrayal, but only he and the Admiral had been privy to those orders prior to the briefing.

Tessai had actually been particularly impressed by Ensign Reian's response, however close the boy had come to being insubordinate. The usually nervous young man had been a little dramatic about it, but when he protested and questioned the orders, reminding all of them of their service oaths to 'defend all against the depredations and damages of uncontrolled magic', he had spoken clearly and directly, and even managed to be polite right up until he walked out. It spoke well for the Ensign's control and confidence that he managed all that in front of so many superior officers and more experienced personnel, even if all of them had been thinking the same things.

He was actually here to speak to her about the Ensign now, and was not looking forward to it. He strolled out to her position, admiring the raised platform's view while he waited for her to acknowledge him. She closed the screen she was working on, turned her head slightly, and gave him a flat look, saying, "Why do I dread the sight of you on my command deck right now?"

"Because you are a wise and insightful woman," he replied with a half-smile. "I'm afraid I have bad news."

"Reian."

Tessai nodded. "When I went to speak to our good Ensign about his behavior this morning, I'm afraid he handed me his resignation. According to him, he 'swore an oath to protect those who cannot protect themselves, and will do that in the Bureau, or in spite of it.' I think his drill sergeant didn't take enough time to knock all the romantic nonsense out of his head before they made him an officer."

Aignu stared at him for a moment longer, then chuckled darkly, leaning back in her chair. "Funny, I was just speaking with Admiral Hallaoun about the Ensign. Apparently, the Admiral is tired of people filing the wrong paperwork for everything, and has demanded that Ensign Reian re-file the correct paperwork to request a leave of absence, and that an admonishment be entered in his personnel file noting poor ability with administrative tasks. Quite the long conversation, for something that he should not even have noticed, don't you think?"

Tessai could almost not believe it. A Sector Operations Commander did not have anything to do with Ensigns, any Ensigns, not even the Ensigns in his own office. For Hallaoun to call Aignu directly, and so quickly, based on what had to be a courtesy copy of Reian's forms, meant any number of things, most of them very dangerous, politically speaking. "He has to realize this is going to explode on him," Tessai commented. "High Command is going to see through this in a heart-beat."

Aignu nodded. "True, but the member worlds may not, and if they do notice, may not comment. Even if the member worlds do see through it, and do call High Command on it, there are several levels of scapegoat available, all the way up to Hallaoun himself. And if they want the 'rogue officers' for some public trial, retrieving the Takamichis, Testarossa, Reian and whoever else pulls this little trick will require a rather serious Bureau intervention on Terra. Serious enough to shut down the entire situation, like we should be doing in the first place. High Command may just let the whole thing slide with some token notes in everyone's files."

Tessai cocked an eyebrow, "How did you know Reian was going to Terra?"

Aignu sniffed, "Don't be insulting. Just because I'm older than you doesn't mean I'm senile. The boy's going to help Hayate, just like we should be doing. I just hope he doesn't get himself killed. Hayate would never forgive herself."

Tessai could understand that, and from the half-amused tone of her voice, thought Aignu might not actually be that unhappy with him. "Well, in that case, ma'am, I suppose I can just skip the report that he'll be teleporting to Terra within the hour. Technically, I suppose, we should stop him to maintain the interdict, but as I recall that does not go into effect for a few hours yet."

"Hmm, not yet, so we can let him go with a clear conscience." Then she smirked up at him, "I've already got Issa down there to get him to sign the right forms this time."

Tessai chuckled, then continued, "So, since you already know that, on to more personal matters." Tapping at an empty clip on his belt, he said, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to requisition a new device, ma'am. I seem to have misplaced mine."

Her eyes widened slightly, and her smirk became shocked, "You didn't."

"I'm certain I have no idea what you mean, ma'am," Tessai responded airily, "I simply can't remember where I placed it."

Aignu suddenly began chuckling, almost evilly, then waved at him to lean over. Opening a small screen, she brought up a snapshot of the teleport bay. Reian was already there, personal effects in a carry-all over his shoulder, but there was also a small cargo crate at his feet, and he was reading a hand-written note. Aignu focused the image on the note, and Tessai chocked in surprise.

_Ensign Reian,_

_Deliver the attached case to Yagami-san, with my compliments. Please remind her she is to have the stress-testing and field trials on the new design completed as quickly as possible, with reports and results forwarded to R&D through the usual channels._

_Admiral Aignu._

"You didn't."

She chuckled again, and replied, "I'm certain I have no idea what you mean."

"A full crate?"

"Fifty standard devices," she replied, "a new modification the girls in development wanted field-tested, according to Admiral Hallaoun. Where better to field-test them? Too many for her students, but Hayate will find a use for them, I'm sure. I would like to make you a wager, though."

Tessai gave her a questioning look, the asked with some trepidation, "What would that be, ma'am?"

"More than half of your Enforcers probably did the same thing you just did. Met him in the hall, 'tried to talk him out of it', and subsequently 'misplaced' their devices. We may not be as able and willing to walk away from our careers as Reian, but that doesn't mean we won't go as far as we can to help."

"I'll take your bet," Tessai replied, then grinned, "but I say that _all_ my enforcers did the same thing. And if I'm reading the other field commanders, Reian will have company over the next couple days. To be honest, I don't envy Hayate. Her poor kids."

Aignu snorted, "Our poor mages, you mean. I've met some of those little hellions. Our poor mages, indeed."

00000

The machine came from deep in the Ural Mountains, where it had lain secure for centuries, forgotten by all but those who stood guard over it and its ilk. The men who had it now neither knew nor cared about that. Drawn from all over Europe and North Africa, driven from their homes and lives by heretics and the corrupt, all they cared about it was that this device would let them strike directly at the monsters they had trained all their lives to defend against. Some of them were uncomfortable with it, but all recognized that, in times of dire need, only fire could be used against fire.

The machine had arrived shortly after the orders to use it. It was surprisingly small, only slightly larger than a grown man's torso, and light enough to be hollow. Despite its physical dimensions, each of them that had to touch it in maneuvering it off the airplane, onto the cargo truck, or onto the jeep that would deliver it to the target, reported feeling an unpleasant draining sensation. It was better than they had expected from one of the Lord of Light's engines of destruction, but unsettling nonetheless.

Getting it into the back of the jeep was uncomfortable, but once it was loaded, they covered it in camera gear and tarps, then tried to forget about it. The orders had been specific about the operation's timing, and they were ready more than a day ahead of schedule. The two men who would take the engine to the target, selected by lots, remained with the engine, in meditative vigil, while their comrades guarded them.

They knew what the target date was. The 'invitation' from the Containment mages had been delivered to every cell, every faction of the Circles, just as it had been to the corrupt, and the men and women in the shop in Cairo had shared a hearty laugh when they noticed the date on their orders. Just as Hughes was being raked over the coals and forced back to the true path, the Circles would strike and prove that accommodating the heretic was useless or worse.

00000

Hayate was more than happy to see Fate, Nanoha, and Yuuno again, despite the circumstances. None of them had been able to get back to Earth very often, and video-messages were not the same as sitting around talking over tea. What she was not so happy about was Reian's arrival, polite as it was. His appearance at the overlook foreshadowed far too many things for her to be happy about it.

"Chrono won't let the Bureau turn on him," Fate reassured her as they flew up to the overlook to meet him. "And we can use every mage we can get."

"I know," Hayate admitted, "and it's not so much him as what's coming after him. You three could be explained by our long friendships. Reian has never served with any of us. He was still in Bureau training when I retired, for Heaven's sake! He's here strictly because of his view on the situation and his conviction that High Command is wrong. The Bureau won't do anything about one ensign, no, but what happens when half the Enforcers decide he's right, and follow him? Aignu's already passed on information that more Enforcers are asking the same questions he did, and more will reach the same conclusions, especially with his example. The Bureau will have to respond to that, have to take some action, but High Command isn't likely to admit they were wrong in the first place."

Fate shook her head, "I think you underestimate High Command. They have to play politics, but they know the Bureau's purpose. If they were as worried about covering things up, Chrono would already be in trouble, ne? And like I said, we can use every mage we can get."

"I hope you're right about High Command, and wrong about us needing them. But then there's the question of what I'm supposed to do with all of them? I'm a teacher, not a soldier! I'm supposed to be holding classes, worrying about Laura's latest prank, or parental interference. Except everyone seems to think I know how to handle Al Hanthis all by myself."

"It might have to do with you claiming ultimate authority over Terra's mages after China," Fate reminded her with a small smile, "What was it Chrono found in that book... 'She who has the power to destroy a thing, controls that thing.' Since you're the most powerful mage in the area, naturally everyone looks to you for answers."

"I know, I know," Hayate grumbled, "But I'm just supposed to be a teacher now. That's what I want to do! Nothing like this was supposed to happen."

"No, but we do not choose our crises," Fate said, "we can only rise to meet them. This isn't like you, though, Hayate-chan. You're used to be much more certain of yourself."

Hayate grimaced, "I used to have the Bureau's authority and rules backing me up. Here, on Earth, I'm just a teacher with some unique skills. I've been thinking about it since March. I had to do what I did to protect my kids, but what right do I have to do it? Now there's this, and everyone is either blaming me for it, or expecting me to fix it in the blink of an eye. But I don't have the Bureau, I don't have any authority to do what everyone expects me to, so how can I do it? How can I do anything?"

Fate shrugged, "I'm not sure, myself. But you do remember the third rule of command, don't you?"

"I remember the first two," Hayate replied, "never give an order that won't be obeyed, and never assume you planned for everything."

"Number three is, lead, and others will follow," Fate told her. "Ever since I took command of the _Asura_, Chrono and I have been talking about command and leadership, where it comes from, how to use it. Given how we became officers, no one ever really taught any of us, but there are books out there, even here on Earth. From what Chrono and I could tell, it really all boils down to rule number three. People are social animals, pack animals. They want someone to lead, not necessarily to tell them what to do all the time, but someone to give the pack direction, stability. If you lead, people will follow, sometimes only because you are leading." Fate chuckled, then continued, "Of course, then there's rule number four, a corollary to rule three – give orders, even if you don't know what to do."

"That sounds rather dangerous," Hayate replied, "going off in random directions like that."

"Hmmm, yes, but the point is, whatever authority you might have or might not have is immaterial. Either you lead, or someone else will. Nanoha or I would be willing, but the Terrans all know you, and you know them. I know you don't want to, but if you don't take command of the situation, of the response, then the Circles will. You know how they'll respond, they've been doing it since last winter."

Hayate shivered at that, recognizing it as true, having realized it herself, but hearing it laid out like that was depressing, terrifying. "I know you're right," she admitted, "but I don't have to like it."

Fate actually chuckled at that, "You wouldn't be you if you did like it. But for now, here's our wayward ensign."

Reian was standing at a somewhat stiff parade rest, doing a credible job of watching them without looking like it. There was a Bureau-issue cargo crate at his feet, and he was still in uniform, but looked distinctly nervous. He almost saluted as they landed, hesitated, then tried to imitate a Japanese bow.

"Hello, Ensign," Hayate told him, "relax, you don't have anything to worry about."

He grinned sheepishly, "I kind of doubt that, ma'am. Admiral Aignu may have let me slide, but..." He trailed off, then shrugged. It was patently obvious he expected to be seriously punished for being here, and Hayate wished she could promise he would not be.

"The Bureau won't trouble you here," she said instead. "But we need to talk, before you come down to the campus."

"I understand, ma'am."

"Hmm, I don't doubt that," Hayate murmured.

"I'm curious," Fate asked first, "about what, precisely, you think you're going to accomplish here?"

Reian flinched slightly at that, but answered, "Ma'am, I came to offer whatever assistance I can in preventing a repetition of the Al Hazred disaster, or Terra's own cataclysm. I know Miss Yagami's record and reputation with the Bureau, and thought she could use some help."

"You realize that may be 'nothing'? We are not exactly overflowing with resources here."

Reian nodded again, "I'm aware, ma'am. I thought I could help with that, even if I'm not A rank yet, and even if all we do is protect the school, it's a better answer to my service oath than sitting in orbit watching."

"You'll follow orders? Just being here, you're technically insubordinate. Whatever we do, we cannot be worrying that you'll turn around when things get tough."

"I'm not going to run away, Admiral," Reain answered, "I am here to fulfill my responsibilities as a Bureau officer, and I will not shirk that duty. I will follow your orders, and Lady Yagami's and Admiral Takamichi's."

Hayate took the next question with a slight gesture, "What about my kids? Will you have any reservations working with them?"

Reian hesitated before answering, looking a little confused. "Um, not that I can think of, ma'am, I would be happy to help with classes."

Fate actually chuckled at that, "Classes? You think Hayate's kids are going to study when there's trouble to be found?"

"While she is being a little dramatic about it," Hayate interrupted, "Fate is mostly right. I will be including my kids in most of our plans. For simple manpower, yes, but also to try and keep them out of trouble. I made the mistake last year of thinking I could shelter them, but they are all too... independent... for such methods to work. So whatever we do about Al Hanthis, the children will be part of it. Will that be a problem, Reian?"

He hesitated again, but only briefly before shaking his head, "No, ma'am, none that I can think of off hand, but I don't know any of them..."

"You'll get to meet them in the morning," Hayate told him. "For now, come along. We can set you up for now in my house."

"If we get any more volunteers, we may want to think about freeing up a wing of the dorms," Fate advised.

"Already doing so," Hayate replied. "I think we'll clear out the rear half of the boys' wing. They won't mind the move as much, and they'll get to feel like they're protecting the girls from any risk with the volunteers. Which just leaves keeping the girls from trying something to protect the _boys _from the volunteers. Sometimes I regret picking such exemplary students – even when they're doing what I want, they're doing too much of it.

"Reian, I'm going to be going to talk to the Circles tomorrow. Nanoha, Signum, Vita, Laura and the Marterosian twins will be going with me. Fate will remain here with Zafira, the Lieze twins, Shamal, Tai-yu, Noriko, Yussef, and you."

Fate picked up, "We will be responsible for safeguarding the campus against any threat, and moving in to rescue Hayate if something goes wrong at the meeting. There will not be any formal classes tomorrow, but the students will be working on building their devices. You'll stand watch with those of us not keeping an eye on the students. If anything happens, stick close to Zafira, he'll need the backup. Here's hoping it stays quiet until she gets back."

00000

pfeil: While it's going to be somewhat peripheral, Chrono's troubles at the Bureau are going to be quite explosive.

MissGardenia: Thank you for all the compliments, I'm glad you're enjoying it. To be honest, I write fanfiction mostly as an excuse to use my characters. It's worlds I have trouble with, though I'm working on it. May even post it one of the decades:). As far as the 'shipping war' around Nanoha, I like both sides – call it neutral ground. But for this series, the Nanoha/Yuuno pair worked too well after the events of Path of Vengeance. Maybe one day I'll do a different story that's Nanoha/Fate, but I'll probably be distracted before then. I've found that I can't drum up the interest in StrikerS to actually sit down and watch all of it, so I'm afraid the Saint Church won't be showing up. Call them 'busy with other concerns', though from what I've read elsewhere, they should be interested in several of the students. Regarding shipping the students, I was trying for Allina and Niranjana, but the Laura/Noriko one was... unintended. Didn't even notice it until you suggested it (so much for my omniscience). Regarding your second post, I am passing familiar with the mage-ranks, and generally figured officers will be higher ranked (Reian is B+ in my notes, for instance, despite being an ensign less than a year out of Bureau training). The kids have never been through any sort of Bureau-style evaluation and ranking, but would score high. As for getting them well-rounded, that's why they're in school:). Again, thanks for reading and reviewing, and I hope you continue to enjoy.

MaZe-Pallas: Kriegsen and Chrono are both devious, in their own ways, but neither is finished yet. Fixed the error you noted, Hughes has never been anywhere near Al Hanthis (luckily for him). Glad you're enjoying the story so far, and thanks for the review!

Kell Shock: Kriegsen's smart, but not omniscient. He probably has some leeway in his plans for minimal 'leakage' from the Bureau, but what and how you'll have to wait and see. To be honest, Kriegsen couldn't care less about Nanoha and co – he wants Takashi, and Hayate because she is Takashi's 'heir'. As for Szash's targets, you've guessed incorrectly, but I won't say about which of the three until a little later. Thanks for the review!

Advent000: I'm curious, which part of the crystals was interesting – using them for data transfer, or Sash's switch maneuver? If the first, I claim no credit but blame Stargate and about half the sci-fi movies and books out there these days. As to the second, sleight-of-hand data-theft is always fun, and someplace as politicized as Al Hanthis should be used to it. The real question is, how much of that maneuver does Yosho know about? Regarding the three students, based on Gali's comments, they probably just want to offer the three loving homes and families... and if you believe that, I've got a bridge to sell you:). Read on and see.


	20. 19 Prophecy

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-19 – Prophecy-

Hayate handled the teleport into Yellowstone herself. Folding the fabric of reality to make the overlook and the target coordinates the same place for just a moment, then releasing the two to separate again, the far point taking her and her group with it. She moved her entire group in under a second, arriving in clear air a kilometer above and twelve kilometers northeast of the coordinates Hughes had given her. Laura provided the twins with flight, going another half-kilometer higher, while Nanoha, Signum, Vita, and Reinforce fanned out, scanning the area for immediate threats or signs of ambush or trap.

There were none, just the carefully preserved wilderness of America's most famous nature preserve. The only people they found were waiting right where Hughes had told them to meet, just at the southern edge of the park. Circling their way closer slowly, the students remaining at high altitude, Hayate kept close touch with everyone, even after they identified Hughes, Schuster, and Hughes' new aide standing next to one vehicle. There were several other mages standing next to a pair of different vehicles, that entire group so painfully formal and corporate they screamed 'look at me!' like a neon sign.

Signum and Vita touched down first, near Hughes. After a brief conversation with him, the two moved over to the unknowns, and proceeded to question them, then inspect the vehicles. Hayate and the others remained at altitude. They were technically exposed there, but it gave them the clearest possible lines of sight, and no attack could reach them before a shield could be raised.

_'Mistress,'_ Signum sent, after inspecting the vehicles, _'the Circles have provided transport. The vehicles are safe, however the windows in back are covered and sealed, and there is a fixed divider between passengers and drivers. They patently do not wish us to know precisely where the facility they are taking us to is located.'_

Hayate mulled that over for a moment, then shook her head, _'Inform them, politely, that we will provide our own transportation. They will guide, we will fly, but we will not trust ourselves to an enclosed vehicle.'_

_'Already done, Mistress, but they are being insistent. If I may try an experiment?'_

_'Go ahead, Signum.'_

There was silence for a few minutes, then Laura announced on a more general broadcast, _'Got 'em, Sensei, two miles north-north-west, inside the park. Looks like they're underground, pretty deep. Can't tell how deep, though, there's a lot of stealth stuff up. Only other activity around here is a small town further south. Want me to see if I can break through their stealth?'_

_'That won't be necessary, Laura,'_ Hayate told her, _'Signum?'_

_'I'm informing them of their subterfuge's failure now, we should be on the road shortly.'_

The Containment team quite obviously disliked Signum's revelations and insistence, but soon gave up the argument as lost. In the end, though, Laura's estimation was off by more than half a mile, the facility's shrouds making it seem much further away than it was. The outside was almost as unimpressive as the original landing site, though it was less artificially 'normal' than the escort team had been. A small cluster of twelve log cabins, little different from any other set of cabins scattered through the park, were nestled against a low cliff under old forest. Several more anonymous vehicles were present, but the small number of people walking about were all clad in hiking clothes more suited to the area. Once Signum and Vita had conducted another personal check of the area and the Containment mages, Hayate and the rest finally set down near Hughes, just over an hour after the teleport.

"We'll have to wait out here a few more minutes," Hughes told her, "while they make sure no one followed us in."

"Is all this really necessary?" This close, Hayate could feel the facility beneath them, an odd humming resonance like a number of electrical transformers none quite on the same frequency. "While I admit, your Circles are very good at hiding these places, I can't imagine it will be too difficult for anyone brought here to triangulate their position again later."

Hughes shrugged, "That's harder than you might think, for those of us stuck on the ground. But even so, you're partly right. Thing is, it's standard procedure when non-Containment people leave a Containment site, for their memories to be... fudged. Don't ask me how, I haven't any clue, but the Containment Division believes it is protecting those artifacts from the rest of us, as well as from the world."

"Actually, sonny," a gravely old voice called in English, "we're protecting _you _from _the artifacts_."

Hayate turned to find an elderly woman leaning on the porch rail of the nearest cabin, giving all of them a sort of judgmental but undecided look. Her face was heavily lined, her hair long since gone to wispy white, but she was wearing the same rugged jeans and boots as everyone else here, the same leather jacket and flannel shirt, and looked tougher than the soles of her boots. Hayate was about to say something, when she hard Laura's mental voice, _'Man, she looks like she could give Wilderness Girl lessons in hardcore.'_ Hayate had to pause for a second to prevent saying something undiplomatic. She was not sure if she was going to yell at Laura, or burst out laughing, but neither would have been appropriate.

Instead, she asked Hughes, "Would you mind introducing us, Grand Master?"

Hughes grimaced slightly, "She is Master Adept Alice Esien, boss of the Yellowstone Containment Facility. She is our host for the day."

"And you, little miss, would be Hayate Yagami, with Signum, Vita, Reinforce, Laura Sims, the Marterosian girls, and one woman I do not know," Esien added. "Since we're making introductions..."

"I'm Nanoha Takamichi," Nanoha told her, "one of Hayate's allies."

"Hmm, allies, huh? Could be useful, given the trouble you kids are causing these days. Saeryn, Rhys, your mother's in cabin four," she waved off to her left, "that way. She's waiting for you, but you're not allowed to leave the cabin with her. You'll leave with your teachers. Go ahead."

"Laura," Hayate said, "go with them."

Esien glared slightly, "You intruding on a family reunion?"

"I'm insuring the safety of my students," Hayate replied. "I don't mean to be insulting, but I have no reason to trust anyone here save my people. So Laura will go with them, and insure that when we leave, Saeryn and Rhys return to school with us."

Esien glared at her a moment longer, then nodded slightly, "Good, you're not as dumb as you look. Go ahead, you three, cabin four. The rest of you, come on in here, we'll head down now. There are a few more representatives on their way, I'd rather you didn't meet them out here where someone might notice the fireworks."

She turned and vanished into the cabin, and Hayate followed, Hughes falling into step beside her. She was somewhat amused at how the rest of her people and Hughes' fell in behind them, neither group quite willing to trust the other, but more willing to trust each other than anyone else. Inside the cabin, things looked as rough and local as one would expect, until they passed through a door into the rear half. There the log walls passed into the stone cliff face, and a solid steel door was set in a heavy frame. Locked by magic and electronics, it took Esien several minutes to unlock the construct and open the door.

As soon as the magical seals released on it, however, Hayate knew there was far more to this facility than 'old artifacts'. The queasy rocking sensation she associated with dimensional instabilities, the nauseating instability to everything, especially her magic, told her this place was damaged, though not the worst she had ever seen. She had to restructure and add to her shields, protecting herself from the effects of the place before the door was even open.

"You do remember that you are not to use magic here," Esien commented, door open just a crack.

"Unless you wish for whatever is stored here to react to my presence," Hayate responded, "stronger shields are required."

"We will provide such protections," Esien insisted.

"Do you make the world shake with your merest step, Master Adept? Because of my form of magic, I do. Your people cannot protect me from what you guard, or what you guard from my presence. They are only shields, nothing more."

"I did warn you, Esien," Hughes commented, "her magic is too strange to follow the normal rules."

Esien looked like she was going to argue, then growled, jabbed a finger in Hayate's chest, and ordered, "Shields only, girl. You do anything else, we'll hold you in violation of the safe passage. Shields only."

"All I intend to use," Hayate assured her. "Shall we?"

Inside was quite plainly an artificial cavern, marks of human work obvious in the walls, but weathered. The passage continued straight back into the cliff face for nearly a hundred meters, before turning left and spiraling downwards. That let out into a large chamber, low-ceilinged but long and wide, lined with statues of what Hayate presumed were Circle or Containment heroes. No two matched, and the appearances and manners of dress were widely varied, seeming to come from all over the world, and all times.

She was puzzling over the varied statues when, as they neared the far end of the chamber, she saw the lone painting, hanging on the back wall between two archways. The woman pictured, more specifically the marks on her hands and forehead, brought Hayate up short. "Who is that?"

"A myth," Hughes grunted, "a legend from the cataclysm."

"Actually, boy, she's a prophecy," Esien countered. She moved to stand in front of the painting, staring up at it. "Before the Cataclysm, the original Grand Circle – all the Circles, actually – had powers beyond even your ken, miss. Among these was the power to stand outside of time, to watch its flow, all the pasts, all the futures, all the presents. They looked into the future to plan their actions. Their vision was not always perfect, for time changes everything, the very act of seeing the future changes its course, but they saw well enough. In the Cataclysm, all those who could do so, saw the return of the Lords of Light. One, and only one, saw hope in the form of this woman. The Goddess of Light, she is called, marked by chains of fate on her left hand, the strength of life in her right hand, and the light of heaven on her brow."

Hayate took all of that in, while studying those marks, and shook her head, "I have no faith in claims of seeing the future, but I know those marks." Gesturing as Esien turned, Hayate traced the first symbol in light, "On her left hand, three vertical lines, beneath a down-ward half-circle, the circle ending in points. It is the rune of anchor and binding, used to stabilize and support a spell." She traced a second symbol next to the first, "Her right hand, a pair of contrasting half-circles, one up and one down, crossing twice at one-third the distance from each end, with a point in the center. The rune for life and healing, the center of spells which save lives." She traced the final, simplest symbol, "On her forehead, a plain circle with a point in the center. Rune for the Sun, and for power in its most raw form.

"All three of them are Deva runes, Master Adept, created fifty years ago by Sara Shimazu. While she was Terra-born, she had no knowledge of any Terran mage traditions, certainly not of this 'Goddess' figure of yours, and she never returned to Terra from Bureau space."

Esien stared at the glowing runes in silence, waiting a minute or so as they faded into nothing, then turned her attention to Hayate for another few moments. Then she smirked, "Well now, there's points for one interpretation of the prophecy."

Hayate frowned, "What interpretation?"

"According to the prophecy, the Goddess of Light will be known before the Lords' return. Some of us take that to mean _you _are the Goddess."

Hayate sniffed, "I am a woman, Esien, not a goddess. There is nothing divine about me. Also, I have no interest in saving the Circles, except where doing so allows me to save everyone else."

"It's a prophetic reference," Esien replied, "not a literal description. Besides, I never said the Goddess would save anyone." The smirk widened to positively vicious levels, "all the prophecy states is that she will _end the conflict_. The precise term, accurately translated, implies only an end to the battles and factions, with no connotations of either victory or defeat, salvation or destruction. She could very well end the conflict by wiping out all of realty, just as the resistant factions in the Circles fear you will.

"Now, the other children are down the left hand corridor, I'm returning to the surface to retrieve the next group."

As Esien strolled back towards the stairs, Nanoha asked, "Why does she keep calling everyone 'children'? I mean, she's not that much older than you are, Hughes."

Hughes chuckled darkly, "She claims to be over a hundred years old. Says the energies in places like this extend and preserve those who guard them. Given how... reliable... Circle personnel records have been proving recently, I'm not prepared to comment whether she actually is that old or not. Regardless, the people we're here to meet are down this way. Shall we, Hayate?"

00000

Rhys was surprised at just how nervous she was, walking towards the indicated cabin beside her sister, Laura just ahead of them. She had thought, on those few occasions when she thought about it, that seeing Mother again would be a time of nothing but happiness and excitement. Taking Saeryn's hand, she whispered in Latin, "Are you sure she would be doing this now, Saeryn? We are not ready."

"We do not have a choice, sister," Saeryn whispered back, "Mother is here, and we will not have another chance to speak to her for months, possibly years, especially now. We are not ready, so we will not discuss the project with her, just as we do not discuss it with Father."

"But Mother always knows what we are up to."

"Because Mother and Father both spied on us constantly," Saeryn reminded her, "something they cannot do while we are at school. Do you not want to see Mother? You were excited about it yesterday."

"I am," Rhys said, "but... we have not seen her in months, and last time was frightening, and now we are at the heretic's school... what if she rejects us now, just because Father sent us to Miss Yagami's school?"

"She is Mother," Saeryn answered, "she will never give up on us, just as we will never give up on her. Relax, Rhys, she will be happy to see us, and possibly attempt to take us away again."

Rhys nodded to that, then asked, "Will we go with her?"

Saeryn gave her a surprised look, then frowned, "I do not know. It would be... difficult... to escape Miss Yagami's tracers, and to leave our project unfinished. If we go with her now, we may not be able to return to Father, ever. But if we do not go with her, we may never see her again. I... do not know."

Then they were there, and Laura was holding open the door to the cabin for them. It was plain, one large room set up as a common area around a fireplace, with stairs leading to open balconies, though that was peripheral. The woman standing in the center of the room was too precious not to stare at. She was average height, willowy, with a sharp face and short brown hair. Rhys did not even make it through the door before breaking into a run, Saeryn following slightly more sedately.

Part of her was mightily embarrassed, naturally. She was Rhys Marterosion, she did not get all weepy and start sobbing over _anything_. But this was Mother, whom she had not seen in months, and had last seen in a confusing and frightening exchange of buster spells and hateful words, so the embarrassed part of her was very small and very silent.

Then Mother, wrapping both twins in a hug, made it all better with a simple, familiar, English phrase, "how are my little roses?"

"Oh, that's a nice one," Laura commented from the doorway, "they are cute, but man do those two have some thorns!" Rhys felt Mother stiffen, the arm around her shoulders pulling her tighter, but managed to turn and glare at Laura, who merely laughed back. "See? Trying to stab me even at range."

"Go away, witch," Mother growled, "you are not welcome here."

Laura chuckled, "Don't mind me, I won't intrude." She faded from view even as she pulled the door closed. Something about the motion made Rhys' eyes itch, but she let it slide in favor of burying her face in Mother's shoulder again and ignoring everything else.

It took them several minutes to calm down enough to let go, and even then neither Rhys nor her sister let go of Mother's hands. They moved to the couch, and promptly ran into a major problem – what to talk about. They had to dance around their project, especially how close they were to Laura. Mother, obviously, had to avoid saying anything that might reveal where her circle was, or what they were doing or planning on doing. It made finding anything to discuss difficult, but they managed by talking about Japan and the non-magic side of their classes. They avoided anything to do with magic as long as possible, but Mother was insistent.

"Girls, I know you aren't comfortable with what they're teaching you, and that's a good thing," she told them. "You have to be very careful, and I am so sorry your father put you in that position. Whatever Yagami tries to teach you, you have to consider it very carefully, weigh it against what we taught you before. You're both so very smart, but this is at a level you should not have to test yourselves against for many years yet."

"There are differences between what Miss Yagami practices and the Lords of Light," Rhys argued.

Mother's eyes went wide with shock, but Saeryn carried on. "Miss Yagami does not replace any part of herself, Mother. There is separation, distance, between the mage and the machine, always."

Mother shook her head, "There is more to corruption than the physical signs, Saeryn. The mind and soul can both be corrupted just as easily, and that is precisely what Yagami is doing." She paused, then sighed, and slid a hand to cup their heads. Rhys felt the touch of Mother's magic, missing for so long, and leaned into it happily. "She's very subtle, and not as reckless as the Lords themselves, but all the more dangerous because of that. I don't like leaving you two there, but..."

She cut off with a hiccup, and Rhys' eyes snapped open to find a glowing white blade under Mother's chin. Tracing that back, she found Laura standing in the middle of the room, Hicho at half extension, glaring at the twins' mother. "I'm the forgiving type," Laura growled. "If you manage, by talking and arguing alone, to convince the girls that they should leave with you, I'll let you take them. Hell, I'll help, and you'd never get rid of Hayate-sensei's trackers without my help. But you talk, you cajole, you treat them like the intelligent people they are. You do not try any compulsions or binding tricks like you just did, or so help me, I will beat you like a red-headed step-child. You don't have a wolfpack backing you up, lady. Don't make me show you why you need one."

Mother lifted her head back off the blade, glaring at Laura the whole time. "You have no right to interfere between me and my daughters, little girl."

"Hayate-sensei put them in my care," Laura replied, withdrawing and dismissing Hicho, "and I'm not going to let her down. Now, I don't particularly care about the legal side of things, but I do care that you're ignoring their right to choose. You convince 'em, that's one thing, but you trying to force them to do what you want? Tche, you're such a Circle mage. Now, you play nice, I'm going to be right over here."

Rhys looked over to Saeryn, to find her sister frowning back at her. It as easy enough to figure out what she was thinking, the same thing Rhys was. "Mother," Saeryn said slowly, "was she correct? Were you placing a binding on us?"

"You're my little roses," Mother said, pulling them into another hug, "Whatever your Father thinks, I have to protect you, and you're not safe at that so-called school."

"You were," Rhys said, pushing away, "you were trying to compel us! You've never done that! There's no reason to!"

"Rhys Jessica Marterosion, you do not take that tone of voice with me! You are very smart, very mature for you rage, but this is beyond anything you have ever dealt with..."

"No," Saeryn interrupted. "You tried to bind us, Mother. Without asking, without explaining. Deception and lies to lull your target into a sense of safety and thus make them vulnerable. You treated us as an enemy."

"I treated you like my little girls, that need to be protected from a threat they don't understand," Mother countered angrily, then paused, sighed, and dropped her gaze. "I'm sorry, girls. I shouldn't have done that, but... you have no idea just how insidiously dangerous that place is for you. I cannot, for the life of me, understand why your father sent you there. You need to be someplace safe, someplace with kids your own age who are learning true magic, someplace we can protect you from people like that witch in the corner. I was trying to protect you." When she looked up, she had a small smile, "but you're not going to let me do that, are you? So stubborn, my little roses. Come here, one last hug, then I have to go to work. No tricks, I promise."

Rhys was quicker than Saeryn, but just a little. Mother never broke her promises, no matter what, with one painful exception, so Rhys trusted her this time. She hugged Mother tight, wishing she did not have to let go. Rhys did not cry, not at all, despite what Laura insisted afterwards, but realizing Mother was leaving again so soon hurt, almost as much as loosing her the first time had. It was almost enough to make her regret coming in the first place. "We miss you, Mother," she said in their last hug.

"I know, rose, I know," Mother replied, "and I'll come for both of you as soon as I can. That is also a promise." Then she was gone, and Rhys could only sit there dejectedly, holding onto Saeryn, wondering how long it would be before they saw either of their parents again.

Laura padded over, settling into a crouch to look them in the face. For a change, she was not grinning or looking devious, just sympathetic. "You know she still loves you, right? She may have tried something underhanded, but..."

"She is Mother," Saeryn interrupted.

"And if you threaten her again senpai," Rhys continued, "we will hurt you."

"Fair enough," Laura nodded, then cracked a slight grin. "You'll forgive me if I fight back when she starts something, won't you? You two going to be all right?"

"Yes," Rhys said softly.

"It was not entirely unexpected," Saeryn added, then sighed. "At least she didn't find out about the devices."

Laura chuckled at that. "Yeah, that one's not going to go over so well."

"By the time Mother finds out about them, we will have all the information necessary to determine if they are safe or not."

"Also the best methods for combating and disabling them," Rhys continued. "The Circles will need what we learn, however it is put to use."

Laura shook her head, "Man, you two are thinking _way _too deep on this one, or not deep enough. You want your mother to come around to your Father's view? Building devices won't do it. You have to convince her of Hayate-sensei's history, the Bureau and all that jazz. Best way to do it? Help us figure out how to work with the Circles to handle the Lords, like Tai-yu-sensei is doing, now that she's not panicking.

"But, for now, we've got a couple hours to kill, and we're in Yellowstone. Wanna see if we can bait a grizzly? Hayate-sensei took Snuggles away from me, so was thinking, a grizzly bear'd make a great pet!"

00000

Hassed watched the forward team go in with a critical eye. There were only two of them, but they had the most dangerous, most failure-prone, portion of the missionWatching the advance team go in was saddening, but thrilling. The Lords had established a perimeter around their floating city that they did not permit anyone to cross. Beyond that perimeter, however, they exerted no obvious authority. The Egyptian Army had moved in, and established their own perimeter a little further out, keeping the curious outside of that, but allowed two places where 'visitors' could approach right to the Lords' perimeter, one on each side of the city.

The two areas were substantial, but nowhere near substantial enough. Everyone wanted to come see the 'amazing' floating construct, ignorant of what its appearance meant. No one in public power had any idea how to handle the Lords, or even where to begin, but people were still curious. Even worse, some of the Lords were coming down themselves, approaching the perimeter on foot, and working out the rudiments of local languages by talking with the tourists and journalists. There was no way to stop the contamination, but it still sickened Hassed, even if most of those down there had no idea what they were doing.

Despite his worries, the lone jeep with two occupants was hardly even checked. The soldiers at the gate had them open the obvious camera case on top, then waved them through and moved on to the next vehicle laden with reporters from all over the world, tourists re-routing from the Pyramids, or locals looking to make a buck off the visitors. The jeep worked its way up to the perimeter slowly, struggling against those who had arrived first and those that arrived second and everyone else trying to get as close as possible.

Major Hassed watched them through his binoculars until they stopped and dismounted, moving cases around to get at their true cargo. Silently he commended their souls to Heaven and thanked them for their efforts. Then he turned back to the men with him, and nodded. "Prepare the weapon."

The men moved with a will, hauling the tarp off the back of one of the trucks in the line. They were, ostensibly, here as part of a supply and transport force for the troops maintaining the actual barrier, close enough to 'the enemy' to be useful, but not close enough to be vulnerable. Which mean they were still in the city's shadow come late afternoon, but they were still several kilometers from being beneath the construct. Most of the trucks with them were just what the papers claimed. But this one contained a second artifact, drawn from a nearby cache south of Tripoli, of a far more brutal bent than the one below.

Hassed's men had been in place for days, plenty of time to line up the weapon with its target. Against the city's shield, the weapon was useless. But the two men in the jeep below were mere tens of meters from that shield, and when the two of them combined their magic to trigger their artifact, the shield would cease to be a problem. Preparing the weapon took mere minutes, opening the access ports and vents, verifying the demolition charges, and making one last check of the aim.

"Ready, Adept," one of the men announced.

"Stand to, soldiers," Hassed ordered, "I will activate it."

"Adept, we do not know..."

Hassed clapped the man on the shoulder and smiled at him. "I know the risks, Master San'a, and my responsibilities. But I will do this. Be prepared to blow the charges and evacuate the area. Do not forget the evidence of the Witch's involvement."

The weapon occupied most of the bed of the truck, and Hassed had to lean awkwardly over it to reach both contact points. He sneered and spat once on the Lords' symbol engraved on the weapon's spine, then turned his attention back to the jeep. One of his men had taken over watching with the binoculars, and was holding up one hand. Seconds ticked past, as Hassed called up his magic and twisted it into the weapon.

A flare of color in the distance caught his eye, and the spotter's upraised hand clenched into a fist. A moment later one finger appeared, then the second after a long pause third. All the while, the weapon charged, shivering under Hassed's hands, generating a distasteful actinic taste in his throat, a weird vibration in his vision. Sound swelled in the distance, the crowds reacting to the flare of power in their midst and the Lords reacting to the threat.

The man's thumb rose, fingers spread, and hesitated there for a moment. Then the hand snapped flat and cut sideways, and Hassed released the contact-points, reaching further forward to slam both fists down on the hated symbol. The weapon discharged, and for a moment Hassed thought it had exploded. It was certainly old enough, and no one had the least idea how to check it for age-induced faults. The mages who brought it to him had only known it was a weapon, and theorized how to set it off.

He was mildly surprised that he did not die instantly in a fiery blast. Instead the heavy crystal on the far end _flowed_, forming a flat disc facing the target, just as he had been told it would, and a beam of concentrated power shot from that surface. It lanced out, as thick as his thigh and whiter than he could believe, an arrow-straight line aimed at the nearest of the city's power generators, the abominable foundation for the city's heresies. Destroying one would cause a chain-reaction to the rest, bringing the city in an orgy of fire and destruction.

The beam passed through the city's shield, through the undulating opening created by the men in the jeep, and Hassed smiled viciously in anticipation. Then, just as it should have impacted, the beam twisted sideways, arcing around the crackling spine of the targeted tower, looping around the tower crazily for a few seconds, before crashing into a dangling tower deeper in the city. There was a massive explosion, certainly, fit to shake the entire daunting edifice and send debris flying over the desert. But the power generator was untouched, and even as Hassed screamed in denial, the shield was reforming, the interference from the other artifact fading.

He almost tried for a second shot, almost. But the instructions had been perfectly clear. One shot, then blow the weapon in place and evac. Leave carefully prepared materials that would point any investigation at the Yagami woman, and make sure none of his people were taken. So instead of trying again, he shoved off the weapon and jumped down, cursing the whole way. "Blow it," he ordered, "then get to your safe-houses."

His own exit was another jeep, along with two other men. They were out of the supply depot and mingling with the fleeing spectators minutes after the blast, anonymous in the crowd of vehicles. Hassed saw a number of Lords flying overhead, converging on the weapon, but their reaction time was slow enough that he and his men had no trouble fading into the background. Enough people were fleeing, rather than running to go see, that no one noticed a couple more jeeps.

They certainly noticed the explosion that came five minutes after the weapon fired. Ten pounds of carefully placed Semtex eliminated any trace of the weapon, the truck it was mounted in, and the neighboring vehicles, scattering the 'evidence' in what should be a convincing pattern.

Seven hours later, Hassed pulled the jeep into a small compound. One of the men with him jumped out to close the gate, while the other went to check the house, leaving him a minute to relax. Someone else came out of the house first, however, and Hassed tensed, until he recognized the Master Adept that had brought the weapon to him. The other man, European, not Arabic, but not too rude about it, leaned on the passenger side of the jeep, and smiled. Extending a hand, he waited until Hassed took it to speak.

"Welcome to the True Circles, Adept Hassed. We have missed you."

00000

"I am not willing to engage in whole-sale slaughter based on ancient myths, old grudges, and a potential for dislocation," Hayate repeated slowly, already tired of making the same arguments. She had been arguing, with Hughes and his people almost as much as with the Revenants, for almost two hours. While some steps had been made to resolve the Modern/Revenant split, they all remained adamant on the need for immediate assault on Al Hanthis. Esien had at least kept the various representatives from pushing for an attack on her or her school, but Hayate could tell most of those at the table would love any excuse to attack her, as well.

"Whatever the danger they represent, the people of Al Hanthis are still _people_. They are entitled to the same respect and opportunities as any other sentient, and that includes the right to decide whether or not to conform to the will of their neighbors. So much of the damage their technology caused happened after they disappeared, or after Terra was cut off from the other colonies, that they may be legitimately unaware of it. Even if they are, now that they have experienced that danger first hand, they will probably be far more willing to talk, to accept strictures or relocation, or _something_. I will not countenance an attack upon Al Hanthis until non-violent means have been given an opportunity and have failed."

"Fortunately for the human race," Jessica Marterosian commented, "we don't need your _permission, _your_ Majesty_. The Circles dealt with the Lords once before, and the best way to deal with them now is to kill them before they get their feet under them. The delay already has been interminable!"

Esien, at the head of the table, laughed, loudly and derisively. "The Circles are going to deal with them? And just how do you propose to do that, girl? Ask nicely? Spit on them? Cry until they go away? The original Circles, the men and women that created the Circles, knew things about magic, about the structure of the world, and about Al Hanthis itself, that you're half-trained little mind can't imagine, let alone comprehend! Yagami wants to talk to them, I'm perfectly willing to let her. Because those same founding members of the Circles?" Esien leaned forward and smirked at the Revenants as she rasped, "Lords of Light, every one of them. Don't you idiots remember your lessons? The Grand Circle was created by Lords of Light who woke up to the dangers they faced, who understood the vileness of the Lords, and acted to _save their fellows_. Lords learned their place in the past, some of these new kids could learn as well. So, let Yagami have her negotiations. While the rest of you plan how to defeat the Lords without the knowledge or powers used to defeat them the last time."

"Fire with fire," one of the other Revenant commented. "Containment has caches of artifacts all over the world..."

"And you'll get access to them over our dead bodies," Esien's aide snarled. "You don't destroy the world just because you're afraid someone else will!"

"Calmly, Harlan," Esien said slowly, then fixed the Revenant with a basilisk glare. "You, idiot babe, may leave now. You are patently too unstable to be trusted within our defenses, and just as obviously have nothing to contribute. Inform those you represent that they may accede to the decisions of this counsel, or be outcast as heretics and exterminated. Containment will never permit what we safeguard to be used, by anyone."

The Revenant met Esien's stare with a sneer. "Fortunately for the war effort, not everyone in Containment is as foolish as you are. Some of them are willing to accept that the only way to destroy a monster, is with that monster's weapons." He pulled out a cell-phone, and read from a text-message. "Mission active on time, first stage successful, second stage failed unanticipated interaction. Minimal damage to target." Dropping the phone on the table, his smirk became superior, "Ten minutes ago, the True Circles struck the first blow against the Lords. It was not as successful as we had hoped, the city was not destroyed, but the Lords' weapons are apparently quite effective against them. All we need is more of them."

Hayate felt a sinking sensation as she listened to that. Just as she had feared for months, a lone Circle had acquired, deployed, and used, a terrible weapon. It was not a nuclear bomb, nor against her school, as her worst nightmares had predicted, but it was bad enough. "You foolish little man," Hayate murmured, mind racing through what information she had on the Lords and the various Terran governments. "The Lords will act to prevent a repeat of your attack, secure all territory in line of sight to Al Hanthis. Egypt will deploy its army, with support from allies in the Middle East and North Africa, who will themselves be afraid of Al Hanthis taking their land. Al Hanthis will reply in kind, and to protect their oil supplies, the rest of the world will join in. Congratulations, Revenant – like Gavrilo with his pistol, you have brought magical warfare to Terra, when no one is prepared for it."

"We fought them off before, and they do not have…"

"Your ancestors fought them off," Nanoha interrupted, "you did not. You have, for thousands of years, avoided military action. You have much experience at subtle espionage and politics, but no experience with operations on this scale, not with magic involved. We have more experience with large-scale operations, even disaster relief which has some of the same issues of scale. But we do not train for _war_, which is what you probably now have.

"When we go into battle, we face criminals, thieves and scientists, pirates when we can catch them. We have numbers on our side, and enclose the battle area in barriers, shift it out of phase with the rest of reality, to protect the people and property in the area. But we hold a handful of people, none of whom have the power or time to counter the barrier. The Lords will not sit still for that. They will bring military formations, military mages, and will fight for military objectives."

"They will lead with the Seed," Hayate said, "they have thousands in stasis in their city. Behind them will come mages, possibly hundreds of mages at a time. Everyone in that city is a mage of some sort, and they have a standing military formed of some of those mages. Mages who remember, personally, fighting your ancestors. They have experience, they have power, and they have an utterly secure base from which to attack."

"I thought you could crack that shield," Hughes commented.

Hayate cocked an eyebrow at him. "Crack it? Certainly. Bring it down? It would take a few minutes, but I could bring that shield down with ease. The spell, if you are interested, is called Armageddon. An apt description. Sara never dared use it, not even a small-scale test of it. But I could crush that shield in a matter of minutes. But Armageddon would have only a fifty percent chance of destroying everything under the shield, and would destroy everything within as much as a hundred kilometers of the target point. Sara estimated that, if she put enough force behind it, she could crack a planet's crust, and she routinely underestimated her spells. But as I have repeatedly stated, I am not willing to slaughter millions of people. I am also not willing to take the chance that Armageddon would _fail _to destroy everything under that shield. If any of Al Hanthis' lost logia get out of control, it would result in a dimensional dislocation. Given the rampant paranoia of your Containment teams, we have no way of knowing what else is hidden in Northern Africa, the Middle East, or Southern Europe, that would react badly to such a dislocation."

She turned back to the Revenants, addressing all of them, "Thanks to your precipitous actions, your childish temper tantrum, there are now two options we may pursue – surrender or war. We may give the Lords precisely what they demand, dominion over all Terra, or we can fight them every step of the way – with only our own resources, our own people. The Bureau will only watch, for months yet. How much damage do you think the Lords can do in a few months? How many people do you think will die in that time? Because you could not exercise a little mature patience.

"I came here hoping that, since February, you had learned that violence, that murder, was not the only option to a disagreement. I had come here in the hope that you had all gained enough experience, enough maturity, to look at an untenable situation and realize that throwing a lit match onto spilled gasoline was a foolish and unnecessary action. I have given you all multiple chances, now, to _grow up_. Instead, I find that the most troublesome of my kids are more mature and better controlled than you."

Hayate stood, slowly, and looked around the table slowly, taking in the faces. "You have resumed the war your ancestors _lost_. Congratulations. Grand Master Hughes, if you wish to assist me in protecting this world from the depredations of the Lords and the war the Revenants have brought upon us, I will take your assistance. But you will be assisting me, subject to my orders. If you wish to do this on your own, best of luck, but do not interfere with me or mine. You know how to reach me."

She was out the door before anyone else managed to speak, and then the entire chamber exploded into shouted arguments. Nanoha was right behind her, Signum and Vita guarding their exit. Then Esien appeared in the hallway ahead, leaning against a wall. She waved sarcastically, then fell into step with Hayate. "Well, that put the cat among the pigeons. Even if they won't admit it, those silly children understand that you and yours are our only reliable weapon against the Lords. There aren't enough mages to form enough wolfpacks to handle the Lords, even if we could get them all close enough together to manage it."

"I have some ideas about the wolfpacks," Hayate told her, "or rather, Tai-yu and Signum do, that should allow you to increase their support range. Use of runes and more efficient structures. We'll pass that on to Hughes, along with some other suggestions. But I was not kidding, Esien. I will not submit to Circle leadership in this, I will not trust my people, or my kids, to your plans and attitudes. Make sure they are aware of that."

"Hughes and I will do that," Esien reassured, "it shouldn't be too difficult. Armageddon? Really? You should test that at some point, just to scare people. Maybe carve your initials in the moon. Just be aware, miss, Containment will not allow what we safeguard to be used. No matter what claims you make to authority or leadership."

"Good," Hayate shook her head, "I have no more interest in doing that than you do. Less, probably, I have personal memories of what a dimensional dislocation looks like when it occurs in a populated area. That will not happen on my watch."

"I have my own memories of such things," Esien replied grimly, "but so long as we are in agreement there, we should not have any problems. Here's the Memorial Hall, straight up those stairs and out the cabin, your students should be waiting. _Without _the grizzly bear the older one was looking for."

"Laura," Hayate muttered in exasperation, "she never stops."

Esien left them there, but Hayate waited until they were in the entry passage before carrying on in Japanese. "Nanoha, when we get back, please help Shamal verify the spare devices. Signum, take the Liezes and check the perimeter wards one more time, and put together plans for reinforcing them to a war footing. Vita, you and Fate get the kids together. Tell them to push ahead on their devices, and talk to them about the differences between what happened in February, and what's going to happen now. Talk to Laura and Yussef, work on tactics for their classes and see if they have any ideas."

Vita asked doubtfully, "You sure, Hayate? A war is a whole 'nother animal from anything we've been teaching the kids."

"Logistics, strategy, and tactics," Hayate replied. "Tactics to fight the troops, strategy to guide the battles, and logistics to win the war. As I told Reian last night, my kids won't stand for being kept out of this, so I am more concerned that they know how to keep themselves alive when the war reaches them, so focus on tactics, on how they fight. Yussef and Laura are the best for that, given his background and her creativity. I'm not expecting miracles, Vita, but having you talk to them will get them thinking and convince the rest of the children that this is serious. Now, let's get out of here before someone decides our departure removes Containment's protections." Plans running through her mind, she could not help sighing one last time, "I just wanted to be a teacher."

00000

Author's Note 1: 'Gavrilo', mentioned by Hayate above, is a reference to Gavrilo Princip, the man who shot Archduke Ferdinand, thus providing the excuse/spark which was the immediate cause of World War One. The Archduke's assassination triggered a chain of events and bad decisions that resulted in war.

Author's Note 2: more of a clarification regarding how they refer to each other than critical information, but the Circles and the Lords use some of the same terms for their mage ranks, but they apply those terms slightly differently. Each rank has ten subdivisions, tiers within the rank similar to the Bureau's +/- system, but more detailed and stratified. The ranks are listed below, in order from lowest to highest, with approximations of Bureau ranks. Do keep in mind that comparative ranking is in large part impossible due to the Circles' refusal to use enhancements.

Circle: Apprentice – Journeyman –Master – Adept – Master Adept – Lord – Grand Master (new rank since February)

Al Hanthis: Apprentice – Journeyman – Adept – Master – Master Adept – specialist command ranks, such as Lord Protector, General of the Army, etc.

Bureau: below C rank – C-/C/C+ – B-/B/B+/A- – A/A+/S-/S – S+ and up

Note that while this does give the Circles and Lords a rather high percentage of S class mages and up, both face other limiting factors, not the least of which is a lack of devices, though the Lords have their lost logia to make up that lack. I do have my reasons, and I swear it's not just my munchkinish tendencies running amok.

00000

Kell Shock: The Revenants crashed the party, but not in the way you were expecting, it appears:). The fallout's going to be very bad, though, as the Lords were the target. At present, you are correct that the first of the devices will be completed next chapter, should be fun. More 'disgruntled' Bureau personnel will show up, but not hordes of them, and there will be some friction with the kids, for a couple of reasons. It'll be fun.

pfeil: The devices from Aignu will have a variety of uses, but are mostly cover. Not everyone who comes to Hayate from the Bureau will have commanders as understanding as Aignu, and Hayate has other plans for some of them. Thing is, the fifty are standard Bureau devices – not 'intelligent', not as fine-tuned as the students' custom-made devices, and thus not as powerful. As for StrikerS, I'm finding it more and more difficult to work up the interest to watch. Part of it is spoilers, but I'm just not feeling the hook that the first two series had. Eh, c'est la vie.

CrimsonDX: Always glad to hear from anyone, especially a regular. The next device unveiling will be next chapter, probably towards the end, with the rest shortly after that, as things heat up. To be honest, I should have handled the Circle team's planning differently last chapter, but it was used above – the 'shield disruptor', limited to close range and brief period of effect, but thorough. At present, the closest I plan to get to Leviathan is the Seed – the critter itself would be a story in and of itself. Thanks for the review!

Ray Venn Hakubi: Glad you liked last chapter. With the ranks, given my avoidance of StrikerS, I will admit to winging it a bit in matching navy ranks to mage ranks. That being said, Reian is the bottom of the heap, both as an officer and as an officer-mage, as Ensign / B+. The other officers... it's not that important to the story, so I haven't detailed them as much. And however many people it has, the Bureau can't do everything with officers, or there's no reason to be an officer, so a ship probably has quite a few people aboard who are the equivalent of modern navies' enlisted ratings and petty officers – mages, but not as strong as the command ranks and enforcers. Conversely, I would be willing to bet that the Enforcers themselves, the ones who actually go out and go toe-to-toe with threats or criminals, probably average stronger than their officer-rank should match, simply due to experience and danger out-pacing record-keeping and official testing. Either way, there'll be plenty of experience to go around on Earth soon enough.

Baughn: As I told CrimsonDX, always glad to hear from a regular. Just remember, no one else can take time off for you, though I would be willing to give it a try:). I'm glad you're enjoying it, but I'm curious as to what you think is going on? Not so much worried about being too obvious, as about being too obscure. There are some twists coming that I want to keep mysterious, of course, but not everything.


	21. 20 Hippocrates

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-20 – Hippocrates-

Szash leaned back in her seat and frowned as Yosho continued to give his testimony. The attack was only a few hours gone, and already the entire Conclave had assembled to learn what they could and decide on a course of action. Looking around, she could see the worried cast to her fellow Masters' faces, could feel the tension and fear in the air. That was bad enough, but Yosho was making it worse just by doing his job his usual exemplary fashion.

The rebels' attack had been vicious but had, apparently and thankfully, failed in its actual objective. Over a hundred dead and close to three times that many injured was not good, but it was better than what would have happened if the attack had actually struck the tower. If their aim had been a little higher, further up the inverted tower from the corona, the blast could have vaporized an entire sector of the city before the fail-safes contained it. The loss of two Protectors when the booby-trapped weapon was destroyed was just the icing on the cake, a last vicious wound.

"This is bad," she muttered to Eri, "nothing but bad."

"But it could have been worse, General," Eri replied just as softly. As her formal aide and secretary, Eri was one of the few non-Masters permitted to attend a conclave, which at least gave Szash someone to complain to when the usually boring meetings dragged on. "That was a Sieretz static defense cannon. Gods know where the fools got one, but if they actually had a proper power source, or knew how to control the beam..."

Szash shook her head, "Not what I mean, Eri. Look at everyone. They're all scared, terrified, of what the rebels will try next. It was an intellectual exercise – what do we do about all these people on our world who don't understand what we are, what we mean to them. But now... now all the Masters are going to see is billions of fanatic rebels. They aren't going to think, Eri. We have to conquer this world, at least, to secure our way of life, but now... now they may demand more than just victory."

"The Masters would never order an extermination campaign!"

"No, they won't order it," Szash muttered, "but they just may arrange for it. Take a note, I need to brief all officers on proper restraint. Whatever the Conclave decides, I don't want my people descending into barbarism. Let the rebels dwell in the gutters, my people will control themselves."

"Yes, General."

Down on the floor, at the speaker's podium, Yosho was coming to the end of his report. "In short, my fellow Masters, the rebels have apparently retained access to major arsenals, but have lost the knowledge of how to use them. They also appear to have lost their distaste for mage-engines, though they retain their fanatical hatred of us. Between the Sieretz cannon and the shield-bridging device, they demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt little-understood weapons to their war. Their method of powering both machines indicates a willful disregard for human life that is criminal, if not malicious, and their deliberate delay in destroying the cannon can only be considered a calculated attempt to kill more of our people."

"Bullshit," Szash muttered, "they were insuring they could escape before the blast. But the Masters won't care."

Yosho was still wrapping up, "We must act, carefully, to fully secure our city. Negotiations with the local governments will take time, time that will give the rebels opportunity to strike again. Further, as I have reported before, I have reason to believe that the rebels have infiltrated the local governments at a fundamental level, making those governments unalterably inimical towards us. We must act, and quickly, but we must also act cautiously. I propose a fifty kilometer cordon immediately, and the preparation of plans to seize the territory known locally as 'Egypt' in the near future. Doing so should provide us with sufficient breathing space to counter any future assaults upon our city and our people."

_Dammit, he's got the initiative and he's not letting go any time soon,_ Szash thought. _How do I get it back form him? How do I go along with everyone else's fear without letting them turn it into some blood-bath? They're terrified, and they're going to... want... to share... that terror..._ "Eri," she whispered, "that list of national and economic capitols you were putting together. How far along are you?"

"Mostly complete, General. Many of the smaller countries are... unreliably detailed. I had planned to include it in tomorrow's reports."

"I'll want that report, but we're going to go over it in detail," Szash said, the beginnings of a plan coalescing in her mind. It would not be perfect, probably would result in more hard feelings all around, but it might just let her avoid being responsible for any atrocities. "We're planning a strike campaign, and those are our targets. If I can get the Conclave to go along with me."

Before she could take the floor, however, one of the other masters asked a surprise question. "Lord Yosho. Identification patches and parts of uniforms which match those worn by some of the rebels taken immediately after our transition out of the Void. They claimed to be officers of some sort of inter-stellar Protectors. Your report has focused entirely on the rebels, not these outsiders, and I am curious as to why, given the identification materials."

Yosho nodded, "you are correct about the materials, sir, however there is other evidence. With parts of a uniform, one would expect there to be parts of the person wearing it, however there were no bodies in the blast area save my Protectors. More tellingly, the Bureau those patches came from are a police force, not a military force. Sieretz Cannons are military hardware, and do not match with any other magic artifacts the Bureau has been seen to use. Admittedly, this may be the first time we have seen them, but I doubt it. The Bureau currently has one vessel in high orbit, and its behavior to date has been consistent with observation. My analysis is that the evidence you have sighted was planted, to misdirect our retribution. To put it bluntly, the physical evidence is a clumsy attempt at misdirection. I had expected better from the rebels, to be honest, given their performance before we were lost to the Void, but we have been gone for several centuries."

The Master persisted, "But you cannot be certain, can you, Lord Protector? This 'Bureau' could very well be using the rebels as a cat's paw, and who says those you captured were speaking truthfully? Would it not be more prudent to engage the Bureau observer and drive them off, in order to insure they cannot repeat their attack?"

"Master Waus," Yosho said slowly, "there is only a single indication of Bureau intervention, and multiple indications that the Bureau has not intervened. The only transits we have detected from the Bureau vessel have been to an island off the far east coast of the main continent. We have detected no transits from there, or anywhere else. The simple fact is, there is plentiful evidence, in the two who died weakening the city's shield and the utilization of primitive local transports, that the rebels conducted this attack, and are attempting to pass the blame on to the Bureau. No, we do not need to worry about the Bureau, not yet. In fact, attempting to drive off their observer would probably invite the very intervention you are currently concerned about. I am not discounting the possibility of the Bureau assisting the rebels, or perhaps using the rebels as some sort of excuse for intervention, but they have done nothing yet, and we cannot afford to risk provoking them. So long as we limit our activities to clearly defensive measures, we should only face rebel opposition."

Szash took the opening as the other Masters pondered that. "All due respect to Lord Yosho," _not that anyone will believe for a second that I respect him,_ "but your suggestion is lacking. The rebels, as you say, have this entire world infiltrated. The problem is not going to be protecting us from future attacks, but convincing the inhabitants of this world, who have centuries of history independent of our rule, that attacking or resisting us is futile and costly.

"Simply seizing territory will not do that, even if we can hold on to it. We must convince this world that our power is so great, the difference between their power and ours so extreme, that they become too frightened of us to oppose us, too terrified to support future rebel attacks. If we can manage that, the local governments will do the work of hunting down and eliminating the rebels for us. But we have to make them aware of our power, make them aware that we are not to be trifled with.

"In furtherance of that, as General of the Guard, I will after this meeting place the entire Guard on operational standby. I request from the Master of Vision, gathered in Conclave, permission to resume the war against the rebels and their puppet governments, effective immediately. I realize this course is somewhat precipitous, but the recent attack has demonstrated that we do not have the time to consider this threat in idleness. We must act, just as Lord Protector Yosho stated, decisively and quickly."

It was not a question for the witness, and thus a minor breach of etiquette, but this entire situation was so strained and so unusual, that Szash was fairly confident no one would call her on it. They would consider her request, remember that the war against the rebels had never been officially concluded, and move it to a vote shortly.

Then Yosho did the last thing she had expected, "You are correct, General, in that a fast and thorough response is required. I had not presumed to go beyond securing the city's immediate vicinity, as the Protectors lack the numbers for a more ambitious endeavor. The Guard should be more than sufficient to support a wider scope of operations. I would like to remind the Conclave that, while no action has been taken for many decades, we remain officially at war, and the General would be within her rights to resume operations without the permission of the Conclave. I move we vote on the General's recommendation as soon as she presents her plans for the initial stages."

Szash glared at him for a moment, surprised, wondering what he was up to. The clashes between the two of them had become legendary, as Yosho tried to reduce the Guard to a shadow and puppet, in favor of his own Protectors, and she fought tooth and nail to retain the Guard's independence and numbers. To have either of them say anything in support of the other, even with the implicit challenge of his request for plans, was unheard of.

_Interesting times indeed,_ she thought. _You're not done yet, are you, you old bastard? I wonder how well your Protectors' loyalty will last when they start taking casualties? _

00000

Meals at the school had, within a week, settled into an established pattern. Most of the second years would get there first, and commandeer two of the middle tables right at the head of the dining hall, closest to the buffet tables where the food was laid out. The first years would follow along 'once it was safe', and generally wound up snagging a third table to one side, which side depending on whether it was one of the boys or one of the girls that got through the line first. Sometimes some of the second years – usually Noriko, Megan, or Marcel – would join the first years, but not always. None of the first years, not even the twins, ever quite had the gumption to try to sit with the second years.

With the arrival of the Bureau volunteers, Ekavir was not surprised to find that comfortable arrangement changing. He had been asked to give up his room in the rear of the top floor and move to the front of the first floor, which had not been a problem. Even moving had been easy, as the boys that weren't moving had chipped in to help. What he did notice, and what made him a little surprised, was that he wound up smack dab in the middle of the wing, with Didier, Jun, Verner and Kaemon, while the second year boys had all moved as well, taking rooms next to the common room, except for Marcel and Yussef, who were at the outer end. They were blatantly positioned to 'protect' the first years, and that was a little insulting.

Still, that realization made the altered dinner arrangements less of a surprise. The first night the volunteers were present, beyond the first, Reian, when Ekavir arrived at dinner, it was to find the volunteers at one table, by the boys' wing. Of the two usual tables, the one closest to the volunteers was fully loaded with all but three of the second years, all of them being just as noisy and friendly as always. When he got his own tray filled, he was going to grab a table close to his wing, but Yussef and Noriko, sitting at the otherwise empty table usually used by the second-years, waved him over.

Settling down, Ekavir shook his head and grimaced as he realized he had been very carefully maneuvered, "You know, you guys are going way overboard with this 'defend the weak' thing. They're no threat to us, and just because we aren't throwing about world-shaking power like you guys doesn't mean we're helpless."

Yussef and Noriko shared a look and chuckled. She responded to Ekavir's complaint, "We don't think you're helpless, Ekavir, but Hayate-sensei asked us to look after all of you, back at the start of the year. And we don't know any of the volunteers yet. We've had some... suspicious encounters with Bureau personnel last year. He was very polite, but he was also very obviously after Hayate-sensei. We learned last year not to take anything for granted, and things are rather tense right now. So, we watch over you to make sure nothing happens to you." Her smiled shifted slightly, "just think, next year you'll get to do the same for your kohai."

"No I won't," Ekavir shot back, "you're all going to smother me to death first."

"We aren't that bad," Yussef said. "Trust me, I know what smothering security is like. When I first went home for the summer, my father was a little paranoid about someone trying to assassinate me. So I wound up buried under a pile of guards for a couple of weeks. Had to cut a tank in half to convince him to go back to normal."

Ekavir choked on his first bite at that, then gave Yussef an incredulous stare. "A tank? You had to cut through a _tank_?"

"Cut it in half," Yussef corrected, chuckling at the look on his face. "An old original-run M1, bought from the US more for show than serious use. Nice machine, but mundane. I was actually trying to get Dad to let the crew take a shot at me, Sand Wall would stop a tank round, but we both got so angry with each other, I switched the demonstration. He calmed down after that."

"I can imagine," Noriko shared the chuckle with Yussef.

"What about you?" Ekavir realized as he asked he probably should not have, but carried on, "your own family had to be worried. Especially since I hear you were the worst hurt last year." He had heard from Kaemon that, apparently, last year not everyone had known who Noriko was, but there had been no attempt at such secrecy this year. It had not been a major source of conversation, but it had not been any sort of secret, either.

Noriko just shrugged, "Laura was hurt worse than I was, though my injuries were more obvious. But my family took it fairly well... well, once Mother calmed down. She has a tendency to be emotional about things. Unlike Yussef, however, I did not have my own people calling for my head. Mostly, my people are quietly curious about us, not afraid. Thanks to my own presence, they seem to regard magic as an outgrowth of the Emperor's divine status."

Yussef grimaced slightly at that, but didn't comment. "The Japanese are too law-abiding to assassinate someone over magic, anyhow. If they objected to it like my fellow Arabs, they would just ostracize her, treat her like garbage until she left. More polite, but ultimately just as damaging as murder. Here, though, they seem to be treating the whole school as some sort of national prize."

"Japan likes to be at the forefront of new technologies," Noriko said. "Ever since Admiral Perry had the gall to dictate terms in Edo harbor, we have preferred to be the most advanced. Magic is the newest thing out there, so naturally my people are proud and happy to have the center of magical learning here. To get back to your point, though, Ekavir, my parents were concerned. But Takahata-sensei reassured them greatly, and Hidan made a point of personally reviewing and updating the security for the entire family. He's very, very good."

Despite the blatant herding and over-protectiveness, dinner was actually fairly comfortable. Ekavir and his classmates spent a lot of time questioning Noriko and Yussef – and Laura when she showed up towing the twins – questions about what to expect, what was happening, whether or not classes were going to be impacted more. There were already disruptions there, with Hayate and one or more of the other teachers traveling back and forth to talk to the Circles or various governments. But the older students had just as little information as the first-years, and their experience from the prior year was hardly the same thing.

"Last year," Yussef explained, "was two short, sharp fights. One when the Circles attacked the campus, one when we went to rescue our friends. They were big, flashy things, lots of fireworks and firepower, but there is a world of difference between that and what we're looking at now, in a worst case scenario. Any fighting that goes on now is going to be long, drawn out, and very messy. This won't be a couple of small factions trading blows over philosophical differences. This is going to be a war for territory and survival on one side, and genocide on the other, with us in the middle trying to protect our teachers while they try to protect Hayate while she tries to protect everyone."

"That is a worst-case scenario," Noriko argued, "Hayate-sensei could still calm things down."

Yussef shook his head, "There's already shooting in Egypt. The government's tracking down every Circle mage it can find, regardless of faction and despite not knowing what they're going to do with whoever they capture. On top of that, the Atlanteans are already pushing their perimeter out. The Egyptian Army is falling back now, but they won't go much further. They can't, not if Egypt wants to remain credible as a nation. Oh, Hayate-sensei may get things to stop there, prevent anyone else from getting involved. It's painfully obvious the Revenants pulled this off to try and screw over everyone, after all. But it's equally likely that this is going to explode. The Revenants are fanatics, the Atlanteans are justifiably paranoid, and everyone else is scared of being overwhelmed or left behind. That's a bad combination, Noriko. Not unrecoverable, not 'all hope is lost', but bad."

Ekavir could not help but feel depressed by that analysis. He was not afraid of battle, of any sort, but the idea of getting caught up in one now, of being a prime target, was not a pleasant one. He turned that over in his mind, while Verner and Chen-chi asked some more questions, looking for some way to improve things, or at least make himself feel better.

While he did not manage that, he did remember a 'note to self' from earlier that day, triggered when Niranjana and Allina rose from the second years' table, that he was having problems with the history homework. He remembered at the last minute that he had meant to ask Niranjana for a few minutes of help, and started to rise to intercept them, when something caught his ankles and waist, and Yussef's hand closed on his wrist like a vice. "Not now," Yussef rumbled. "Sit."

The abrupt order and borderline-hostility was enough of a surprise that Ekavir slumped back into his seat. He noticed a pair of glowing pink rings around his ankles and waist, then asked, "What's this?"

"You're being harsh, Yussef," Noriko chided him, to which Yussef let him go, then turned to Ekavir. "We had planned to talk to you about this later this evening, but now will do. Would you be willing to take a walk?"

"I'll handle it," Yussef said, rising to his feet, "come on, Ekavir."

"Yussef..."

"I'll handle it, Noriko. I may not be comfortable with... everything... but I'll handle this. He's one of mine, after all."

"He's not property, Yussef."

Yussef chuckled, "No, but he is a hard-headed male and would-be soldier. That makes him one of mine."

Ekavir was still confused, more so actually, but he followed Yussef to the kitchen, cleaned up his dishes and tray in one of the sinks, then stacked everything for the washer. They worked in silence, mostly because Ekavir was too confused to push, then Yussef headed out the back. Once there, Yussef picked him up with magic and lifted both of them to the roof of the boys' wing, before walking to the very rear of the wing.

Yussef took a few seconds to start, staring out over the woods. "This is going to be a little difficult, probably embarrassing, but I need you to bear with me. We're having a bit of a problem amongst the second years, and you appear to be a major part of it."

That was not reassuring, and Ekavir tried to defend himself, "I haven't done anything, I swear!"

"Maybe, maybe not," Yussef replied, "figuring that out is why I'm talking to you now. What it all comes down to is, what are your intentions regarding Niranjana?"

Ekavir twitched at that, even more confused. What did studying with Niranjana have to do with anything? "My _what_?"

"Your intentions towards Niranjana," Yussef repeated. "She's pretty, she's incredibly intelligent, even without magic she's got enough skills and smarts already to have a bright future, and she's not loud, brash, or uncontrollable like half the girls here. Your intentions, Ekavir. You've been spending more time with her than with anyone in your year-group, outside of class. So, what are your intentions?"

"Ah, I, wha... I have no idea what you're getting at, man. Sounds like you think I'm going to ask her out or something!"

"That is precisely what I think, Ekavir, and what the problem is," Yussef said, then relaxed to sit on the edge of the roof. "Look, I'm not going to come down on you, I'm not mad, especially not since you seem to be just as confused as everyone else. It's like this, Allina and Niranjana were the big romantic relationship last year, in large part because both of them were so strongly in denial about it. They were 'cute' and 'silly', and all of us feel that they're perfect for each other. Now, they appear to be breaking up over you."

For a few seconds, Ekavir was even more confused. He had a hard time picturing Allina and Niranana fighting over anything, let alone something as non-technological as himself. It was even harder to picture any of the second year boys with Niranjana. It took him a while, most of it in silence as Yussef gave him time to think, to realize precisely what Yussef had suggested their relationship was. The Arab waited until Ekavir blinked and twitched, then chuckled, "Yeah, you're no cosmopolitan, are you? Kind of confusing, isn't it?"

Ekavir grimaced, "Not confusing, just not something I had ever thought of. I mean, looking at it now, I guess I can see it. They act like one of my older brothers and the girl he's interested in. Always together, always talking about each other, but not actually doing anything. So, how does..." he trailed off, realizing the answer to his question before he even finished it, "Oh, crap, everyone thinks I'm after her as well?"

"Pretty much."

"That's ridiculous! I mean, she cute, and everything you said, but she's way out of my league! Besides, I'm like, thirteen! My mother would skin me alive if I went after a girl anytime in the next three years, then she'd hand me off to my father! Especially if I did it without their approval!"

"You might not have noticed, but your parents are several thousand miles away," Yussef chuckled, "and while Hayate-sensei may be our second mother, she tends to treat us as fairly responsible until we give her reason not to. So, for those who are interested, this is a perfectly good time and place to take a stab at a boyfriend or girlfriend. That's pretty much what Allina and Niranjana are, even if they won't admit it yet. To be honest, however uncomfortable I may be with it, even I think of them as a couple. I'll admit, I missed what was going on this year, but when Noriko pointed it out to me, I was royally pissed at you for about a minute for intruding on them. And that reaction right there is the problem. Have you noticed who gets pranked most in your class?"

The non-sequitur threw Ekavir a bit, but he was getting his feet back under him. "Mercedes, like tonight – she swiped Laura's cake as payback for Laura locking Mercedes' PDA in Cyrillic, right? Or did Laura do something else to her between then and now?"

"Who else?"

"Uh..." Ekavir had to think about that one, mostly because he was so used to laughing at the 'war' between Laura and Mercedes. "Chen-chi and I, I think."

"You, more than her, and not all of the pranks have been Laura's fault. See, last year, the two of them were kind of funny-cute until February. In February, Allina got herself captured getting Niranjana out, and Niranjana freaked over it. Then Niranjana was the one Allina called when she cobbled together a magic cell-phone. The two of them have been joined at the hip ever since, and... well, it's hard to match the drama of Allina sacrificing herself for Niranjana, or Niranjana's quest to get Allina back. Then you show up, and before the first week is over, you're 'moving in' on Niranjana. Forget whether you're actually interested or not, forget whether it even occurred to you, that's what we all saw.

"I'll admit, at first we just kind of laughed it off. Allina and Niranjana are so possessive of one another, the idea of someone new intruding on that was laughable. But Allina started getting depressed and angry, and avoiding Niranjana, which made _her _confused and depressed, which made the rest of us angry. Figuring out what to do about it took a while, though, mostly because none of us were quite sure how to do it without embarrassing everyone involved and making it worse. Thing is, no matter how we do this, someone's going to get embarrassed."

"And you all want it to be me," Ekavir said, shaking his head. "Man, this is... not at all what I expected to get caught up in at magic school. Look, I'm not willing to go all sacrificial lamb or anything, but if you've got any suggestions, I'm all ears."

"That depends on your intentions towards Niranjana," Yussef said. "We won't tell you you can't try to get her attention, but if that's what you want, you're on your own. In everything."

Ekavir chuckled darkly, understanding that the second years could very easily make his life a living hell, and finally sat down next to Yussef, feet hanging off the edge. "I've got two older brothers, and an older sister," he said. "My oldest brother, Sanga, is twenty, and just got married. Durga, my other brother, is seventeen. He's been not-going-out with Surma since before they were of age to date. I've heard both of the talking about girls, gotten some pointers from them as well, though I think they were laughing at me for some of them. Thing is, they both agreed, you don't poach someone else's girl. They were thinking of another boy's girl, but... same seems to apply here, right? Sanga just plain told me not to ever do it. Druga offered to break my knees for me, said it was betrayal of the highest order, plain and simple. So no, I'm not interested.

"Besides, even if I was... I'm not a 'farm boy', but there's no way I'm in Niranjana's league. I mean, she does calculus in her head! She writes in code – programming code! – like it's short-hand. Did you realize how smart she is? I'm no village idiot, but come on! Her family's going to match her up with someone big, probably before she even graduates. Forget caste, money, or position."

"Surprised you're thinking about that sort of thing," Yussef admitted, "but you'll find that you're wrong. Oh, I admit she's a genius – 'scary smart' as Laura put it. But none of us are dumb, and we're at the forefront of the future. Wherever we go from here, however this current crisis turns out, we're all going to be well past caste, money, position, race, even religion. But, for now, we have to deal with keeping my classmates from stringing you up for something you're not consciously doing. First thing is, now that you're aware of it, you need to back off. The flip side of that is, you can't do it too fast, or Niranjana will notice and start worrying about that as well."

"Which would just change the reasons everyone's mad at me," Ekavir muttered.

"We're not mad at you, not really. Just upset that two of our friends are upset. So, to start with, you're getting a new tutor. I think Marcel would be best for most things, but Noriko and I can make some time. You might do well with Toushiro as well. What subjects are you worst off in?"

It was far from the most comforting of conversations, even after the embarrassing parts were done, but Ekavir was happier hearing it from Yussef than he would have been hearing it from Noriko. Yussef, however Arabic, was a guy, and understood Ekavir's side better than Noriko would have. Plus, talking about girls with a girl was just plain wrong. But mostly, Ekavir was kicking himself for not having noticed earlier, and for coming so close to dishonoring himself. Sure, a relationship like Allina's and Niranjana's might be a new idea to him, but it was still real, still there, and if he had intruded on that, it would have been shameful.

Still turning it over as Yussef left him on the ground again half an hour later, he realized he was going to have to call his brothers. _Man, Sanga and Durga are going to rip me a new one, but I need help figuring out how to fix this._

00000

Two days after Hayate's trip to Yellowstone, Cidela was more nervous than she could remember being since she arrived at the school, the last time she had seen her father. There was a singing emptiness in her stomach, and her knees and hands were shaking so badly she could barely type, barely pay attention to Hayate-sensei's lecture. When the bell rang at the end of class, she jumped so hard she almost knocked her desk over, and nearly had a heart-attack.

When she calmed down from that, she realized _everyone_ was staring at her, and friendly smiles or not, that was a terrible feeling. Now she was worried about Rafiq, about her device, and about her classmates.

"Relax, Cid-chan," Hayate told her, walking over to rest a hand on her shoulder, "this will be fine."

"We will meet you down there, Cid-chan," Noriko told her, waving the others in the class towards the door, "whenever you're ready."

Cidela started to try to go with them, but Hayate held her back gently. Her classmates filed out with quiet words of reassurance. Once the two of them were alone, Hayate pulled over a chair, took Cidela's hand, and asked, "Are you sure you are ready for this, Cid-chan? I know the idea of having a device makes you nervous, but you're worse today than I think I've ever seen you. We can wait, give it a few days, let some of the others go first."

Cidela slumped a little, embarrassed that she had been so transparent, and ashamed that she almost wanted to agree to the offer. "No," she said after a moment, "I don't want to wait, it's just... I'm worried."

"I know," Hayate said, "and that's a good thing, especially how worried you are about Rafiq. We've given you all the reassurances we can, all the history we have. Activating a new device while you have a familiar is not that uncommon, nor is it uncommon to have a device when your magic is still somewhat wild. Look at Nanoha, she was using record-setting spells long before she learned to fully control her magic. Mages with familiars often have to replace their devices, due to any number of reasons, and it never has any effect on the familiar. You provide the power to Rafiq, whether it goes directly to him, or through a device. You don't need to worry about this, Cid-chan, but until you're sure, you don't have to try."

"No, Hayate-sensei, I'll do it, but... I'm sorry, I'm just... very nervous."

"We'll be with you every step," Hayate promised, "Shamal will be watching over you, and Fate and Arf will be watching over Rafiq. Every step."

"I know, sensei." Knowing it or not, hearing Hayate's reassurances did help calm Cidela's nerves, a little. Enough that she could collect herself and stand up without shaking.

"Good girl," Hayate said, rising herself, "now let's go get this over with, shall we?"

Shamal was waiting in the hallway, taking Cidela's hand silently and walking beside her. Hayate lead them to the workroom, then held the door open for them. For just a second, standing in the open door, only her mother's hand in hers kept Cidela moving forward. Then she saw her device, sitting in a cradle a short way inside the workroom, and froze in place again, the conflicting emotions of the moment – fear, anxiety, excitement, wonder, terror – overriding everything.

Rafiq calmed her this time, coiling completely around her neck like a massive necklace, flicking his tongue over her cheek. _'Please remember to breathe, Mistress. It would be most embarrassing if you keeled over in a faint right now.'_

The matter-of-fact tone and hint of laughter, made her choke on a giggle, but reminded her to breathe, and she let go of her mother's hand to reach up and stroke Rafiq's head in thanks. "I'll be okay," she insisted, as much for Shamal as for Rafiq, then started walking forward again. She managed to filter out her classmates as she passed through their ranks, then paused about halfway to her device, where Lotte was waiting.

"You know generally what to do," Lotte said, "but this one's a little different, for obvious reasons. So, you'll have some company up there on your stage. Don't worry about it, relax, calm yourself just like we've been practicing in class. You have to hear your heart to hear your device, okay? So stay calm, give it some juice, and let's see what we can see."

"Yes, sensei," Cidela answered, and resumed walking forward.

Her device, in its unactivated configuration, was subtly different from Noriko's or Laura's. Theirs had both had an unwieldy, haphazard appearance, Laura's more so than Noriko's. Cidela's was very organized, the components arranged in a collection of arcing lines, falling from a central white sphere. It reminded her of a hanging fern, more than anything else, even as her eyes picked out individual parts. The primary circuits, the secondary processors, and the all important regulators – she had spent enough time researching each part, all their functions and interactions, that they were all as familiar to her as her PDA.

Stepping up close to it now, she could not entirely still the shaking of her arm as she rested a hand on the central processor. Rafiq curled down around her arm, then around the device, until his head rested on the back of her hand from the far side of the core. She had debated passing him off to Shamal for this, but it would have been wrong, not including him. Besides, having him with her made her feel safer, helped her calm down.

Now she reached for that stillness, the calm and steady control her mother had taught her, that Lotte had helped her refine specifically for this moment. She found it, not easily but she found it, and words floated into her mind as her power spiraled into the device. "I will do no harm, I will teach what I have learned, I will cure those who are ill, I will defend those who need my aid, and I will repair that which is broken. I ask your support and call upon your strength, Hippocrates, that they will know my name, by the numbers I have saved."

The tendril of power she had been feeding the device crescendoed, and for just a moment she was so gloriously thrilled, it was so easy and such a smooth feeling. Hippocrates impressed itself on her mind, drew its identity from her even more deeply and thoroughly than Rafiq had, and she could feel it coalescing in her mind and in her hand. Then the process interfaced with her linker core completely, and her healing gift reacted, turning the smooth swell of power into a flood, struggling to burst free and run wild.

This was a familiar battle, one she was long used to, even if her response was new since the previous year. Instead of trying to suppress it, to hold the power in and make it all go away, she dissipated it, clamping down on her linker core and cutting off the chaotic surges by decreasing the energy drawn. Rafiq had made the process so much easier, handling the dissipation of excess energy much more quickly than she could manage. Now, though, there was another presence, Hippocrates, tied in to her linker core more deeply than her familiar, shunting the power aside and fading it into the background. What should have taken minutes was finished in a matter of seconds, and while she was gasping, it was more in surprise than effort.

As she recovered from that and regained her breath, she studied the object now resting lightly in her hand. It was a square cross-section staff, about the length of Reinforce, capped by a pair of wings spread upwards around a small green gem stone which floated free. The entire staff was an almost painful white, and there was an odd twist to its length, the upper half of it twisted through a complete rotation about its long axis. Rafiq was now curled around that twist, his tail still wrapped about her arm, his head and neck swaying as he inspected the gem.

"Rafiq," she asked, "are you all right? Is there anything odd or uncomfortable?"

He paused in his inspection, cocking his head at her, then replied, _'No, Mistress, nothing at all. I am fine, the activation has not affected me at all. Hippocrates also appears to be stable.'_

Cidela nodded, then began a scan of her own, checking him over, just to be sure. She found Fate and Arf running their own checks from where they stood back by Lotte, but as much as she respected them, Rafiq was hers, and she would worry until she made certain herself that he was all right. She also vaguely felt the familiar touch of her mother's magic, a deep and thorough scan similar to what Cidela was using on Rafiq. It was a little amusing, so many health scans running simultaneously on two people, but it was hard to begrudge anyone their caution, given how nervous she still was.

She was starting to relax when she heard Shamal say, quite distinctly, "Her linker core has restructured itself again, Hayate. I still don't know how or why, there's no sign of any stresses or exterior forces, structurally it's as if her linker core was always this strong, but it's a half percent stronger than it was last night."

Hayate was calmer, "Is she in any danger?"

"No," Shamal sounded more exasperated than worried, "I just cannot understand why it keeps happening! The linker core is supposed to be fully grown and stable by the time someone is nine or ten. I can find a few cases where people have come into great strength in moments of extreme stress, especially while the linker core is still stabilizing, but nothing like what keeps happening with Cid-chan."

Turning to look at Shamal, Cidela asked, "Okaa-san? What do you mean about... my linker core changed?"

Shamal blinked, then her eyes went wide. "You heard that?"

"Of course, Okaa-san," Cidela replied, confused, "You were just speaking to Hayate-sensei..."

_'They were using telepathy,'_ Rafiq told her absently, _'not broadcasting.'_

"What? But I heard them!"

Shamal put a hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry about it, Cid-chan. We'll talk about it tonight, after dinner. It's something I've been keeping an eye on, just an oddity, nothing to worry about. For now, your Hippocrates looks stable, Rafiq is fine, even with the shift in power from you to the device. Can you show everyone what you can do now?"

Cidela wanted to press on that point, but the reminder of their audience quelled that. Tonight would be soon enough, after all, and if it was truly something for concern, Shamal would have had her out of the workroom and under serious observation by now. Instead, she turned to a challenge she could win. "Rafiq? I have a device now."

He did not turn to look at her this time, merely replied, _'I believe that is the proper term for this hunk of plastic, yes.'_

"Do you remember what you refused to try again until I had a device?"

Rafiq paused in his continuing inspection and looked at her again, then visibly drooped. _'You are going to insist aren't you?'_

"Fair is fair, Rafiq. I'm tired of people judging you as a mere snake, and of you being so dependent on me to get around."

_'No one judges me, and I'm not dependent on you, I simply prefer being in your presence. But, if you insist,'_ he uncoiled from around Hippocrates and her arm, settling to the floor in a coil, _'do your worst, you heartless dictator. I can take it.'_

She smiled at his joking tone, "Nice try, Rafiq, but you control your shift, remember? Go ahead," she hefted Hippocrates, "I'm in no danger this time."

Rafiq began to glow, a deep green that rapidly expanded before fading away. Rafiq in full humanoid form was something of a surprise, she had expected him to be about her size. Instead, he was even taller than Zafira, towering over her, but whip-thin and wiry, bald, with heavily slanted eyes and almost no nose. He was dark-skinned but strangely shaded, similar to the scales of his snake form – darker on his back and sides, pale on his chest and stomach. She had expected him to have armor, similar to Zafira's, but he was dressed in loose flowing pants tied tight at the ankles, light sandals, a long-sleeved shirt with open front, and a leather strip tied around his head. It was that which made her finally laugh, for burned into the leather was a caduceus.

What had her confused, however, was the lack of drain. When they had tried this over the summer, the sudden spike in his energy demands had been actively painful, but now she had to mentally check Hippocrates to find any change. "Very appropriate, Rafiq," She said. "But illusions won't count."

"This is no illusion, Mistress," he replied, looking himself over and carefully testing his new form. "Full-size shape-shift, as requested."

She frowned, checking her power carefully, "but that's impossible. You're not drawing any more power from me, and you should be."

"He is, actually," Shamal told her, "but you can't feel the difference. It's related to your linker core, we'll talk that over tonight. You will notice when he begins using his own magic, and when you try greater spells."

"But shouldn't I feel a greater drain now?"

"Technically, yes," Fate took over the explanation, "however you have had Rafiq for a long time now, and are very much used to supporting him without a device. You are so used to how hard you had to work to support him before Hippocrates woke, and now Hippocrates vastly simplifies that issue. Give yourself some time to acclimate to the device, and you will notice the difference between his forms."

Cidela could see that, nodding along, "Did you undergo the same adjustments, Testarossa-sensei?"

Fate shook her head, "No, I was not as ambitious as you. I already had Bardiche when I created Arf. At the time, I thought a device was required, and Precia... well, you'll adjust to Hippocrates over the next few days and weeks, I expect. Just be careful, all three of you, until you are adjusted. For now, Lotte-san?"

"Ah, finally, someone remembered that this is supposed to be _my _class," Lotte complained dramatically. "Recognition, such a wonderful feeling."

From amongst the students, someone stage-whispered, "Encore, encore! Give that woman an Oscar!"

"That's enough out of you, Laura!"

Laura just laughed, "Wasn't me! I blame Allison."

"No comment," the other girl replied.

"Regardless," Lotte continued, glaring at the audience equally for a moment longer, "Let's see what you've got, Cid-chan. Other than a hunk of a body-guard. Armor first, please, let's be safe."

Cidela blushed at Lotte's comment about Rafiq, but could not come up with a good reply. Instead, she stepped away slightly, and asked, "Hippocates, Aegis, please."

"Yes, My Lady," the device replied, surprising her with a voice similar to Shamal's.

The wash of energy up her arm cleared in a moment, leaving in its wake a long-sleeved dark-green dress. It was similar to Shamal's, but subtly different, one color, the open skirt reaching floor length over long pants and soft shoes. She had a scarf wrapped around her hair instead of a hat, and a truly ridiculous number of pockets, with a sling on the back for Hippocrates. She rolled her shoulders, shifting around to see how it felt, but it was perfectly comfortable.

"Not bad," Lotte allowed, "I'm sure your mother approves. Now, where to go next? Oh, I know!" She gestured slightly, and a small gemstone on her collar vanished in a flash of light. Cidela blinked, instantly sensing a series of minor strains and a not-so-minor sprain. Lotte continued, "I hurt myself a little getting Laura off the ceiling yesterday..."

"Hey! I was doing fine until you got in the way!"

Lotte grinned at the interruption, but carried on, "... I'll let you fix it, Cid-chan, but not until the end of class. Let's see just how well your control holds, shall we? Now, I know you're not really a fighter, so we'll start with defenses. Hayate gave Noriko a target, so, here's yours," she gestured and a trio of standard targets appeared further down the room. Lotte pouted at them for a moment, "I wanted to use Rafiq, give you some incentive, but _someone_," she mock-glared at Shamal, "threatened to take you out of my class if I did that."

Cidela flinched at that, reaching out instinctively to find Rafiq resting a hand on her shoulder. "I would have left, instead, sensei. I couldn't let someone threaten Rafiq, I'm supposed to protect him."

Lotte laughed, "Silly girl, he's a familiar! It's _his _job to protect _you_. But, we already know you have him under your thumb, let's see about this device of yours. Laura! Three targets, fire on my command in three..."

Cidela knew she could not hope to match Laura's rate of fire, or predict which targets Laura would strike in which order. Unlike Laura and Noriko, she had also not given much thought to new spells for her device, being more focused on getting it assembled and making sure it was safe. So she seized on the simplest exercise she could, the second shield spell Lotte had taught them, and simply poured power into it. It did not feel like much, compared to the strain such an attempt used to cause, but Hippocrates responded instantly, forming a circular barrier just as Lotte said, "Fire!"

Laura, being Laura, went for all three targets simultaneously, using her bolt-drones instead of direct shots. All three of which slammed into a green wall, framed by a ring of runes that stretched from floor to ceiling.

"Damn, Cid-chan," Laura commented, "I'm good, but I'm not Godzilla."

Blinking at the shield, Cidela commented, "Um, that is... larger... than I... expected."

"A first attempt with a device," Rafiq said. "Naturally you will need to adjust."

"Hmm, that's part of it," Lotte agreed, "but I bet its training, too. Tell me, Cid-chan, did you just form the spell to the requisite size, or did you do anything else?"

"Um, I did not set a size," Cidela answered, "I... cast the Round Shield spell you taught us last October, and just... put more power into it. The more power, the larger the Round Shield becomes, yes?"

Lotte laughed, "Not at this scale, chibi-ko. Round Shield's really only stable up to about a three meter diameter. After that, well... just hold that shield for now, Cid-chan. Fate-chan, something with a little more 'oomph' behind it, please?"

"Of course, kitten," Fate replied, calling up Bardiche with a gesture. "Thunder Smasher, Fire."

A yellow ball of energy appeared at Bardiche's crown, then became a lighting bolt rumbling down-range. It slammed into Cidela's shield, and she felt the impact, just before the buster, reduced but not stopped, punched through and carried on into the central target. The sensation of the buster passing through her shield was odd, like a needle slipping through numbed skin.

Odd sensation or not, she asked, "Shouldn't it have collapsed?"

"Not in this case," Fate told her. "Thunder Smasher is a siege attack, designed in part to penetrate defenses. Given how diffuse your shield's structure is, it will stop a minor or unstable attack such as Laura's bolt drones, but a dedicated siege spell will pass through it. I could take it down, probably with a variant of Phalanx Shift to hit most of the shield at once, but that wasn't the point."

"The point was, you don't have to worry about the power anymore, and there are very few spells that are generic enough for any situation," Lotte told her. "Choose your spell, choose the end result you want, and let Hippocrates handle the power, let Hippocrates handle the little details and patterns. You, especially, have been working on keeping every last little bit of every spell you cast under complete control, that's going to be a difficult habit to break. Especially in the face of challenges like not fixing my sprain. Now, we have a few more tests to run. Try not to worry about power levels or detailed structures. Form the spells, yes, hold them in your mind, know what you want them to accomplish, but try to let Hippocrates handle the nuances. Next up, movement. Can you fly, chibi-ko?"

Cidela was more than a little confused by that lecture, it sounded like Lotte was telling her to throw away everything she had learned since coming to Japan. But simplifying things was one of the reasons she had decided to pursue a device, so she had to at least try and do things the 'right' way, at least until she figured out how to modify that for herself. "I can fly, sensei," she said, "Mercury Ascendant."

00000

MaZe-Pallas: Fixed the typo, thanks! I'll probably get around to watching the rest of StrikerS eventually, but I'm in no rush. Though I have never wondered where Yuuno's device is – Nanoha has it:). Glad you're enjoying the story and here's 'more'.

Tombadgerlock: I always try to reply to reviews, though I've missed a couple due to computer failure. I have some ideas for where Nanoha and Fate are in terms of skill and power compared to my characters, general continuations of the progression from first series to As. As you can see above, they have a blatant skill advantage over the kids, much as Chrono had over them.

Ray Venn Hakubi: Hayate's predictions are not going to be perfectly accurate, because she doesn't know Al Hanthis that well, but will be generally accurate. The thing about Al Hanthis' is, they know the Circles better than Hayate does. Their information may be out of date, but the Circles' activities and responses have become more like Al Hanthis' assumptions over the years. Hughes' Moderns may surprise them, but not especially. What is really going to surprise Al Hanthis, despite Kriegsen's betrayal, is Hayate and her crew, which surprises will start happening shortly. Also, typo fixed, thanks! As for Jessica's comment, that's lifted word for word (except for Rhys' name) from something I heard from my own mother way too many times.

MissGardenia: Glad you're still reviewing, and I understood your last review, FFN's idiosyncrasies aside. And please don't complain about fast updated, I may slow down:).

Anonymous: Not sure who posted this one, no name showed up in it. Couldn't find the first typo you noted, but fixed the other two. The 'evidence' left behind by Hassed's team consisted mostly of parts of a Bureau uniform and patches, but as noted above, it was a clumsy attempt that has partially failed. Put it to you this way, it's a case of Hassed and his people not seeing or understanding any difference between Hayate and the Bureau. Kriegsen's information was much more accurate in that respect. Hayate's involvement could come from any number of factors, not the least of which is that she told the Bureau she would handle any magical emergencies on Terra – which this qualifies as. Also, there's her natural inclination to help the defenseless (as Egypt's army will be in the face of the Lords), and her ingrained distrust of lost logia such as Al Hanthis uses. Specifics will show up in a little while. As for the runes, go look at the meanings Essien ascribed to them again, and compare with Hayate's runes. You are right that Hayate looked at them and saw Deva runes, but the meanings are so close, especially for such abstract markings. Someone else could use them, but the chances of those runes having such close meanings are miniscule. Thanks for reading!

Skyfall v2.0: The 'evidence' was some left-over bits Kriegsen left when he was 'helping' Li. Less effective than the Revenants hoped, mostly due to their misunderstanding of Hayate's relationship with the Bureau. The kids' reactions are still coming, those will be spread out a ways. You'll note how Cidela gave no thought to it, an 'ignore it until it goes away' approach. This chapter's a little slower than last, but I'm trying to build a wave-pattern to the chapters, ups and downs that eventually peak at the end. Glad your enjoying this, thanks for the review!

Ryand Smith: New BSG or old BSG? I liked the new BSG mini-series, but the full series lost me halfway through season one. Still, I can see the comparison, though Chrono's reactions are based more on some of the side characters in Honor Harrington, in those parts of that series where she was 'out of favor'. Nanoha is present mostly because I could not imagine her not showing up. I could picture the Bureau being forced to back off, but not Nanoha, and where she goes, Fate & Yuuno go. Strong as she is, even she is going to have challenges here, from numbers if nothing else – Al Hanthis has a population of around a million people, all of them mages of varying degrees. I've had some rough spots, and there are a couple more on the horizon, but this is definitely worth it for me. Thanks for the review!

Shinjai: Glad you're enjoying this, and thanks for the review. I do work hard on keeping things covered and consistent, thanks to running role-playing campaigns. The more consistent you are, the me believable everything is, so I do try to make sure everything makes sense. Also, it makes it easier to keep things consistent, since I don't have to spend as much time and worry where everything is and what everyone is doing, it's already figured out. Good luck on prognosticating where this is going, I'll do my best to surprise you.


	22. 21 Wake the Devil

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-21 – Wake the Devil-

Laura was in the Library when the hammer came down on Egypt, two days after Hippocrates woke, reviewing the last gathering of her extra-curricular class and planning for the next one. She was half expecting Al Hanthis to move the day after Cidela woke Hippocrates, but they waited another day beyond that, no doubt just to ratchet up everyone's tension levels. When they dropped their hammer, though, it came down in a big way. Chen-chi found out about it first, trolling news sites for usable information, and her shouts brought everyone running. For once even Natalia did not object to the shouting.

From her usual spot towards the back of the second floor shelves, Laura missed Chen-chi's initial reaction, but the hubbub got her attention and she trotted out to see what was wrong. By the time she got to the balcony overlooking the common area, someone had put up the news feed Chen-chi found on a large free-floating display.

Bad did not begin to describe it. The video was from a mobile news camera, apparently on a hotel roof in down-town Cairo. Someone was describing the scenes in Arabic, but Laura could not tell if it was the cameraman or someone else. There were pillars of smoke rising throughout the city, and larger columns of smoke visible all the way out to the horizon, scattered but painfully obvious. Tracers and missiles were flying up into the sky from various points, most seemingly un-aimed. Floating above it all were an indeterminate number of mages, all of them wearing some sort of uniform obviously from Al Hanthis.

Most of the students, and a couple of the Bureau volunteers, were gathered together, watching worriedly and quietly as Al Hanthis' assault on Egypt was broadcast. Laura could see looks ranging from fear to anger to resigned calm, pretty much where she expected them, with fear being the most common. That bothered her greatly. She could understand it, feel a little of it herself. Talking with Vita and Yussef after the meeting in Yellowstone had not been a happy occasion, and she understood the differences between last year and this one. But she also understood just how skilled her teachers were, she trusted them, and she had faith in herself and her classmates. Al Hanthis was a tougher challenge than the Circles, sure, but they were much better prepared for such challenges now.

The cameraman focused on one such mage as the man gestured, hand glowing white, causing a tank to lift up out of an intersection. Another gesture, and the hatches snapped off, plummeting to the street. The tank rolled over, coming to a stop a short distance above a building, and began shaking violently, reminding Laura of nothing so much as a salt shaker, complete with crew falling out of the hatches. Once four people had fallen out, the mage made a sweeping gesture with his arm, and the tank wafted up into the air on a long arc that carried it clear to the Nile, where it vanished in a massive splash.

Watching her classmates more than the video, Laura decided to lighten the mood. "Tche, amateur," she half-shouted, "no class, that one. A skilled mage would have just teleported the tank into the river and left the crew behind."

"Actually, a mage with class would have simply teleported out the fuel," Yussef countered. "No fuel, no engine. No engine, no hydraulics, which means no aiming the big nasty gun, and that's all most tanks have that can hurt a prepared mage. The machine-guns are a joke, at least against us. You notice they don't seem to be using any Seed?"

Laura rolled over the rail and floated down to sit cross-legged just above a neighboring table, "Yeah, I noticed. Just as glad, too. Can you imagine trying to fight one of those in a building?"

"Easy, collapse the building," Marcel suggested.

"Maybe, but those things are fast and smart. One of them surprises you from somewhere you didn't notice, and bam! You're on the ground with a magic-nullifying rabid grizzly on your back."

"They won't use the Seed yet," Yussef said, shaking his head slowly, "not until they've been bloodied. I don't know what Al Hanthis' military doctrine is like, but the Seed are too obviously a terror weapon, strategically no different from a gas weapon or disease, with all the morale problems those imply. They unleash those, anyone who gets a look at one may be scared, but they'll be pissed off, too, and so will everyone else. This is a first move, a test to see what they can get away with. The Seed will come once someone hammers them back. Which, judging from the look on Hayate-sensei's face, is in a couple minutes."

Laura glanced up to find Hayate coming down the stairs from her office, trailed by all four of her knights plus Reinforce. The group was fully armored, and Hayate was practically glowing, her usually restrained power shining through. "Children," she said slowly, "The volunteers, my knights, and I are going to Egypt, to Cairo. The Egyptian President has requested our assistance in protecting the city, and I cannot refuse him. Aria, Lotte and Tai-yu will be remaining here. Please behave, they are going to have enough to do as it is. We'll be back as soon as we can."

"Good luck, sensei," Yussef said.

"Be safe," Noriko added, as Cidela hugged Shamal tight.

Laura knew she probably should have said something similar, like everyone else was, but all she could think of was, "Want some company?"

Hayate actually smiled at her, but shook her head, "You three are responsible for helping Aria, Lotte, and Tai-yu protect the campus. The wards are good, but as the Circles proved, they are not perfect. Aignu is on stand-by in case the worst happens, but Aria has those instructions. We'll be fine, children, this is just a peace-keeping intervention. We will be back before dawn, at the worst."

Then they were gone, and even Laura started worrying. The last time Hayate and Sensei had gone out on a mission like this, someone had annihilated part of Egypt in an attempt to kill them, kicking off the attack on the campus. That memory made her look over at Yussef, who was looking back at her. He gave her a sardonic smirk, and said, "I'll flip you for the main workroom."

Laura grinned back, "We could spar for it, non-magic."

"Not in this lifetime, ditz."

"Here," Noriko interrupted, holding out a coin between them, then she flipped it, saying, "Chen-chi, call it."

"Edge, neither of them gets the main room," Chen-chi said, everyone watching the coin fly up. Noriko was surprised enough at Chen-chi's prediction to miss the catch, and the coin bounced off the table-top, bounced and flipped a few more times, before rolling to a stop against a book, on its edge.

Laura glared at the coin a moment, then shifted the glare to Chen-chi, who just giggled back. "Cheater," Laura growled, swiping the coin and tossing it back to Noriko.

"Prove it," Chen-chi countered.

"Magic on the coin, obvious as the grin on your face."

Chen-chi shook her head, "It's been in Noriko's pocket all day, even during you guys' practical class. Nothing but exposure traces."

"Let it go Laura," Noriko told her, pocketing the coin again, "she called it right, so neither of you gets the main workroom. The two larger secondaries are being used for device construction, which leaves the personal-sized workrooms. So, in the spirit of keeping everyone busy until dinner, allow me to suggest that the second years go back to working on their devices, and the first years come with me to the main workroom. I've had some new ideas since the Seed attack that I would like to try and show all of you.

"Cid-chan, could you please go check on Shamal-sensei's office and clinic, make sure everything is in place, just in case? Marcel, could you please inform the Kobayashis of what is going on, and ask that they prepare something for dinner that can be left out, in case everyone gets back late?"

Cidela and Marcel nodded and headed off, the other second-years already packing their materials and heading out. But Verner raised a hand, asking, "Noriko, we've all got homework we should be doing, right? Why not get it now, where we can still watch?"

"There won't be classes tomorrow," Laura told him, "not if the teachers wind up having to fight. They'll be too tired and sore, trust me. So you can do the homework then. Right now, we don't need to watch this crap, we'll all just worry more, and Riko-chan might be tempted to head off to Egypt on her own. So we go keep ourselves busy with something that'll eventually let us look after ourselves."

"The workrooms are also easier to defend," Yussef said, "so long as everyone is inside them. One entrance each, heavy shields. Admittedly, the Library's the toughest building to attack, but the workrooms are individually better protected. So, come on, everyone, let's go work on some extra credit."

Chivying the first years out of the library took some doing, though Laura sympathized with them. She wanted to stay and watch as well, see if any of the broadcasts would show the teachers arriving or in action. But, unlike the first years, she knew how to bring up displays anywhere, including in the workrooms.

What bothered her was, her Sensei was going into battle without her. She was not insulted or angered by that, she understood the logic and Hayate-sensei's responsibilities. But it made her nervous, not knowing what, precisely, Sensei was up against, what was happening to her now. Laura knew perfectly well that Signum could take care of herself and everyone around her, but knowing that and being where she belonged – at Sensei's side – were two different things. Then there was the fact that Cairo would be a perfect test for Laura, a chance to prove to herself that she wasn't the monster she remembered turning into while fighting Li.

No, Laura was not happy to be left behind, however good the reasons.

00000

Hayate arrived in Cairo to find the city in chaos. Everyone who was not armed was trying to get out of the city. Everyone who was armed was trying to fight back against the mages flying overhead. Every one of those mages was seeking out resisters, and disarming them. She was pleasantly surprised to find that the Al Hanthis mages – Szash's 'Guard', given the similarity of their uniforms to hers – were refraining from lethal actions. They were not even setting down, but flying over the city in a search pattern, maintaining a fairly rigid formation.

Hayate's teleport came out in open air, due lack of familiarity with the city, but right above the presidential palace. While the rest of the city was showing signs of combat, this was the only building which showed obvious signs of magical damage. Half the roof had been torn off and dumped in the courtyard in front of the palace as a single mass, and there were painfully neat spheres plucked out of the ground and building where hasty defenses had been summarily removed.

She and her people were met almost immediately by Guard mages. Ten of them appeared to be on aerial patrol around the palace, and were shaping spells even before the teleport had finished. Hayate did not hear what they said, no warnings or spells, but busters splashed against Fate's and Nanoha's shields, dissipating their energy almost instantly.

"Stay close," Hayate ordered, "initiating a phase barrier." The others built a layered shield around her for a moment, one that would easily stand up to more than ten mages. Gathering reality around herself, convincing it to fold off a little pinch of itself, was finicky, but not difficult. Maintaining it against determined resistance would, however, require most of her attention. When it was ready, she held up one glowing-white hand and whispered, "Jericho." The pulse of white swept out over the city in the blink of an eye, wrapping every active user of magic and wrenching them out of phase with the rest of reality, into a temporary pocket world.

Drawing the Sword of Light, Hayate dropped Reinforce into the hologram's waiting hand, and passed out orders. "Reian, take the other volunteers and round up the Circle mages, Modern or Revenant. Get them organized, quick as you can. Wolfpacks would be nice, but all I need is coherency. Gather them along the Nile, they're our anvil. Keep me apprised."

He nodded, "Ma'am," and plummeted out of the sky, the seven other Bureau volunteers following him a little more slowly, pulling their shields with them.

Hayate turned to her friends, "Fate, Arf, Wolkenritter, you're with me, north to south line, let's start pushing back the Guard. Try to concentrate them all in one area, over the river preferably. Don't get caught up in duels, hammer one back then move on to the next. Nanoha, Yuuno... bring me Szash."

"My Lady," Signum answered, then gestured. As the other shields faded, Signum's exploded outwards. Little more than a wash of heat and light, it was enough to distract the Guard mages, long enough to for the Wolkenritter, Fate, and Arf to break wide and engage the gathered Guard.

Hayate held back, focusing on the barrier. New as it was, she could already feel mages – Circle and Guard – trying to break it, which spoke well for everyone's reactions. She had to stabilize the barrier if she was going to do anything more than give orders, she had to strengthen it against those it contained. She was so focused on that she did not notice a Guard mage slipping past Reinforce and Vita until the Sword of Light, held gently in her off hand, wrenched her arm around. The flash of light as it caught and dissipated a buster spell broke Hayate's focus, not enough to drop the barrier, but enough to get her attention.

"So," the man said in heavily accented Japanese, "You would be the redoubtable Yagami Hayate. I am Colonel Esar, Master Rank." Like all Guard mages he was dressed in a practical version of Szash' uniform, and surrounded by a cloud of torso-sized free-floating energy shields.

Hayate nodded, "Colonel. While I commend your troops' restraint, I offer you a chance to withdraw your forces. You have no cause or right to attack a sovereign nation in this manner."

Esar smiled widely, "Ah, the traditional mid-battle posturing. You have to realize you cannot stand against us? You have what, twenty mages with you, thirty? I have fifty, trained soldiers more than capable of seeing you off."

Hayate shook her head, "Do not underestimate us. Look behind you, Colonel, your soldiers are being driven back by my Knights."

"But who is here to protect you, Yagami?" His smile shifted to sadness, "I am afraid that, impressive as your ability to single-handedly hold that barrier is, that is all you can do. You are defenseless before a Master Mage. At present, Miss Yagami, you are an uninformed but well-meaning interloper in our response to an unjustifiable assault upon our people. Yield, and I will permit you and yours to withdraw from the field unharmed and unbound. Refuse," he held up one hand, a glow forming above his palm, "and I am afraid I will have to consider you in league with the rebels who so manifestly rule the city below."

Shifting her stance slightly, Hayate shook her head. "I cannot do that. This world is under my protection. They have the right to their own fates, their own views, their own rule. You have no right to take those from them."

"A pity," Esar replied, "I had hopes for your intelligence, given your manifest power. Destroyer."

The packet of energy formed into a lance and launched at Hayate, only to meet the Sword of Light once again, the mage-blade disassembling the attack and absorbing its energy. "I am afraid you are incorrect, Colonel," Hayate told him. "It is true that my personal energies and focus are consumed by the barrier at present. However, my Sword and Staff retain their own energies. Your shields appear quite solid. Allow me to show you one of Takashi's old spells for bypassing shields. Sunspike."

The spell was unfamiliar to her, but part of the Sword's memories. She needed only give the blade permission in response to its suggestion, and energy swirled about the weapon. It coalesced at the tip, and she was vaguely aware of wind pulling in towards that point for a second, feeding a pocket of true plasma. Then a bolt of energy shot down the blade, intersected the red-glowing sphere, and the entirety launched towards Esar.

The Guard Colonel watched the spell form, and almost negligently held up a hand between them. The small shields that had clustered around him shifted out from in front of him, covering his back, as a new shield formed, a circle wider than Esar was tall, laced in a seemingly random pattern with Al Hanthis runes. He patently expected that shield to stop her attack cold, and for a second it seemed to as the yellow-white bolt detonated against it. But the white bolt destabilized part of the shield, and the red sphere within the bolt pierced the instability, collapsing instantly and unleashing a terrible wash of heat and light over Esar.

Hayate was impressed with the spell for a fraction of a second, surprised Sunspike had manged to penetrate his defenses so easily. Then Esar wrenched away from the plasma cloud with a terrible shriek, his floating shields slashing into the dissipating cloud in a vain final attempt to protect him even as he plummeted towards the ground. Hayate reacted without thinking, dropping in pursuit, using the Sword's power to catch Esar short, holding him in the air without touching him.

His left hand, the one that had been extended, was hideously burned, uniform charred away. The burns continued up his arm to his chest, neck, and face, steadily lessening the further from his hand they had been. His uniform was similarly scorched actually burning slightly as she caught him, until she extinguished the flames.

"H-heh... under... esti... mated... you," Esar commented as he faded into unconsciousness. "Good... work... Yagami."

"Kami-sama," Hayate breathed, studying his injuries, "he didn't have a barrier jacket up, just mage-shields." _'Everyone, be very careful. The Guard does not appear to use barrier jackets, and may not be prepared for physical attacks. Attempt to use that, but please don't hurt or kill anyone. Remember, we want this to end here.'_

_'I don't think that will be possible, ma'am,'_ Reian replied, _'I've got a Guard prisoner here, one the Circles captured and were... starting to question. He says this is just an advance force, scouts. The real strike force is on its way, and Szash is leading it.'_

00000

The crowd of students was just getting through the doors to the class building when Tai-yu's telpathic warning reached them, _'There's a breach in the wards! Someone just teleported in to the overlook... it's Szash. Aria, Lotte...'_  
_'We'll handle it,'_ the twins replied, then Lotte continued, _'Kids, stay loose. Tai-yu, watch for other intruders. Release the wards to limited combat status. You're clear to engage intruders, try not to shoot Takashi or Akira if they show up. You might annoy him.'_

Noriko caught Laura's grin and sighed slightly in exasperation as her friend shouted, "Dibs on first response!"

Noriko tried to catch her, but just missed Laura's ankle. She shouted after Laura, "Stay here! Laura! Do not go to the overlook or I'll... I'll tell Signum you abandoned your post!"  
Laura hesitated, already ten meters up, and glared at her briefly. _'That's cheating Riko-chan.'_

_'What was it you told me the other day in your class, 'cheat to win'? Stay here, Laura, let Aria and Lotte handle it.'_

Noriko was fairly certain Laura would obey that order, right up until a stranger's voice sounded in her mind. _ 'Hello, Noriko, I am Szash, General of the Al Hanthis Guard. Despite your teacher's paranoia, I am not here for violence. Rather, I am here to make you an offer. Your teachers are dragging you into a hopeless battle, child, and I thought to offer you a way out, before you commit yourself. This offer has no strings attached, and will remain open until you choose to close it. Leave Hayate, do not support the rebels as she is now, and I will promise you Japan. The Masters will leave your nation to you and your family, so long as you do not actively oppose us. If you do, I will not be able to protect you or your country from the ravages of war. I understand your people have suffered such defeat once, would it not be better to spare them a repetition? Think on it, young lady, and think carefully.'_

Noriko prayed, for just a second, that Szash had only spoken to her, not to anyone else. But the look of mounting anger on Laura's face would only have come from a similar offer. Both of their reactions were cut off, however, but Natalia's shriek of rage, as the Russian girl took off running for the over look. She was not jogging either, but full-on _running_, as fast as magic could push her, faster than she could fly.

"Laura, cut her off, I'll catch up to her. Yussef..."

"We're going," he interrupted. "Szash can't handle all of three us, four if Cid-chan comes along, however good she is. Myrmidons, get everyone else into the main workroom."

Noriko started to object, it was a very bad idea to confront Szash, even here, but... even she could feel the insulted anger welling up inside her. It was not overwhelming, as it obviously had been for Natalia, but passing that on to Szash would be nice. "Carefully," she insisted, "we go slowly, watch everywhere, and certainly do not go running up there full tilt and out of control. Catch up."

While flying after Natalia, she reached for the Lieze twins. _'Aria-sensei, Lotte-sensei, we just had a message from Szash. Apparently it went to all the students. She tried to offer me Japan, if I just stayed out of their war. It was rather insulting, and Laura, Yussef and I are on our way up to the lookout. I've got an idea to get rid of her.'_

_'That's not a good idea, Noriko,'_ Aria countered.

_'I'm sorry sensei, but it's the three of us, or all of us. Szash just badly miscalculated. I'm trying to catch up to Natalia now, she's borderline berserk.'_ She caught up to Natalia then, and wrapped the other girl in a cloud of petals, tightening it down to a dome to force her to stop._ 'We won't start anything, sensei, but even someone as skilled as Szash should be is going to have to back down from all five of us up there. Excuse me a moment, I need to talk Natalia down.'_

Noriko landed outside the edge of the dome, and had the rear quarter peel away. Natalia was scratching symbols into the ground, charging them, in a patent attempt to break Noriko's barrier. "Natalia," she said, causing the other girl to look up, glaring. "Let it go, Natalia."

"She threatened my brother," Natalia snarled. "I'll gut her for that."

Noriko flinched at the raw hatred in Natalia's voice, but she understood her friend too well to question it. Noriko thought Natalia took it a little far, but also understood that she had not lost her family as Natalia had. But Natalia's rage could very easily get her hurt or worse, going up against Szash. "No, you're not going to touch her," Natalia countered, "not today, not like this. Your emotions are too strong, Natalia, you won't have the control to face her. Aria and Lotte will do that, with Yussef, Laura, and I as backup. Let us handle her now, Natalia. You can help us bring her down later, when your device is done, when your control is better, when you've had time to plan, instead of just reacting. How much good are you going to do your brother if, in your haste, Szash puts you into a coma right alongside him?"

"I'm not letting her go!"

"Yes, you are," Natalia repeated. Distracting Natalia with the argument, she used a handful of petals to sweep away most of the symbol Natalia had scratched, but the girl was too stubborn to stop. She had progressed to arguing while trying to continue her spell, when she suddenly twitched once and keeled over. Blinking in surprise, Noriko hurried to her side, to find her breathing softly, her pulse steady.

_'She'll be fine, Noriko,'_ Cid-chan told her, _'I just put her to sleep. Laura needs you, up on the overlook. Szash is reminding her of Li.'_

Noriko debated for a second longer, but she could see Rafiq trotting down the path, so she nodded to him and took off, arcing up out of the woods. Szash was standing in open air above the overlook, Aria and Lotte between her and the campus. Laura was higher and to one side, Yussef standing right next to her. Noriko was halfway there before she realized Yussef was actually lightly restraining Laura, a hand on her shoulder.

_'Noriko,'_ Aria said, _'help Laura and Yussef keep her distracted. Lotte and I may be able to capture her, if she's not paying attention to us.'_

"Calmly, Laura," Noriko told her, falling into place next to her friends, "this one is not worth your temper."

Szash gave her a sardonic look, "I suppose you're going to misconstrue my offer as well?"

Noriko gave her a flat look, "General Szash, of the city of Al Hanthis, on the authority of the Emperor of Japan, I hereby place you under arrest for espionage, incitement to treason, attempted coercion of a minor, and trespassing on Imperial lands. About twenty counts of each, by my last count."

Szash just grinned, "Really, Noriko, do you think you can hold me from all the way over there? I admit I back-traced your teachers' teleport, but I am hardly so amateur as to physically visit hostile territory. I came here to extend you all an offer, in good faith, to avoid unpleasantness."

Laura shrugged off Yussef's hand, growling, "You tried to get us to turn traitor! You hurt Natalia, and you insulted all of us!"

"An attempt to maintain peaceful relations is never an insult," Szash countered.

"But attempts to insight treason are," Noriko replied. "Your attempt here has failed, rather badly, Szash. And you are under arrest. It may take me a while to catch you, but you will face trial here in Japan. My word on that."

"We're not interested, bitch," Laura snarled. "You may be some psycho warmonger who'd betray your people for power, but we know what loyalty is. You offered me my family's safety. I say, my family's perfectly safe, _because I protect them_! I say my teachers are better leaders than you, my country's a better one than yours, and I will never betray them."

Szash nodded slowly, "Good to hear. I respect loyalty, honesty. You sound like a Knight of old, loyal to her lord to the last."

"I'm not a Knight," Laura said, drifting forward slightly, a white glow starting to form around her, "I'm more than that. A Knight serves their lord above themselves, above anything. Me? I serve a cause. You almost destroyed the world once, now you're trying to conquer it so you can try again. I'm going to stop you, _we're_ going to stop you, because you're wrong. You're a monster, no different from the Revenants who thought killing kids was a good idea, who think blowing up a market to kill one man is reasonable. I learned how to fight monsters last year, _Mister Morden_, and I'm looking forward to showing you how good at it I am. I'll stand against you wherever you go, whatever it takes, between you and your victims. I'm not a Knight, I don't serve a lord, I serve righteousness and justice. I am a _Paladin_, and I swear I'm going to bring you down."

Noriko could only watch her friend through that speech, as the streamers of white power flowed off her. Hearing the rage in Laura's voice, she was surprised the other girl was refraining from violence, even with Szash's claim of projection. Still, she could not let Laura run wild for very long, so she reached out a hand and rested it on her friend's shoulder. "That's enough, Laura. You don't need to prove anything to her."

Szash merely nodded, "I understand your position, Paladin, and respect it. You have given your answer, and I look forward to facing you on the field of battle. But for the rest, my offers – and I made offers, not threats, despite what Natalia and Laura think – will remain open until your actions force me to close them. For now, I bid you good day." Her politely interested expression shifted to an anticipatory grin, "I have a city full of rebels to conquer. I'll see all of you in Hong Kong." A cloud of runes appeared, flowing independently about her, then she flashed and vanished.

"Lying bitch," Laura swore.

Aria heard that one, "Laura! Language! However rude she was, there is no call for such language."

"Sorry, Aria-sensei," Laura said, calming down and looking a little sheepish. "But she was lying. That was a teleport, not a projection shutting down."

"Yeah, and we almost had her," Lotte complained, drifting up to study where Szash had been. "Another couple seconds, and the binding would have been ready and in place, we could have given her to Hayate-sama as a present. Gah, why can't we have incompetent enemies? Either way, good job distracting her all of you, thanks."

"She was not here for a fight," Yussef said. "She had defenses up, but nothing that could have retaliated, she was not holding any spells ready. Even the teleport was sudden, rushed."

"An attempt to undermine us, create dissension in our ranks and hobble Hayate-sama when she can least afford any distractions." Aria shook her head, "Wherever Szash got her information on us, she did not get enough of it, or does not understand it well enough."

"She just guaranteed we will all fight her now," Noriko agreed. "She should not have been this clumsy. Unless politics in Al Hanthis is far more uniform than is the norm. Possible, with such an isolated culture, but not really normal. We'll have to ask Vita-sensei when they get back."

"A good idea, there may be something there we can use," Aria said. "For now, though, you three should head back to the campus. Make sure Cid-chan has Natalia in hand, and let the others know they should stay in the workrooms for now. Lotte and I need to check the perimeter, just to be sure."

As they flew back to the campus, Noriko asked, "Laura, Cid-chan said Szash was reminding you of Li. What was she doing?"

Laura glared at nothing for a second, "She threatened my family. Said if I fought Al Hanthis, my family would end up paying the price."

"She promised me the Middle East," Yussef said, shaking his head, "like it was hers to offer. Caliph, she called me. If I wasn't so busy keeping Laura from doing something stupid, I'd've been liable to hit her myself."

"She offered me Japan," Noriko said, "safe and untouched."

Laura looked at her for a second, then smiled and nodded. "Her mistake. Can't believe she thinks we're that weak."

"She will regret that mistake," Yussef promised, "many times over."

00000

Nanoha knew why Hayate had assigned her and Yuuno to find Szash. It had nothing to do with protecting either of them, and everything to do with skill. Short of Hayate herself, Nanoha was the strongest mage in the area. Yuuno, using one of Aignu's 'test' devices, was not as strong as she was, but just as quick and skilled, and in areas she was weak. She had been forced to break out the tears to get him to agree to take a device, but Nanoha was far happier now that he had – the automatics alone were worth his grumbling. The two of them had always been formidable, and they had never lost a quarry, to escape or injury. The two of them had, as a pair, an enviable track-record of success stretching all the way back to when they first met.

The only problem was, there was absolutely no trace of her target, and the closest approximation had quite willingly gone to Hayate, and then proven himself stupidly over-confident. Not the lack of a proper barrier jacket – none of the Guard mages they had encountered were using the basic defensive spell – but in his expectation that a single-layer shield sufficed against Hayate, of all people.

Nanoha was, in general, less than impressed with the Guard mages. Even after Hayate's warning of their lack of barrier jackets, and Reian's warning of follow-on forces, she found them less impressive than she would have expected. They were technically skilled, roughly where she expected Bureau A-rank mages to be, but painfully rigid. Hit one with a Divine Buster, and he defended with a deflection shield and followed up with something like Fate's Plasma Lancer, as would the next mage, and the next, and the next. She felt like she was fighting a poorly-programmed simulator, more than real enemies. Even the most rigid Bureau mages were more flexible than this, more creative.

She could see advantages in the Guard' methods. Training had to be simpler, more efficient, command and control would be easier with larger numbers of mages, and they were certainly _fast _with their spells. But it was childishly simple for Nanoha to find the patterns in their actions and exploit them. Blocking Fate's Plasma Lancer was old hat to Nanoha, the Guard' counter-attack similar enough, that she was almost bored. As she worked her way down Esar's chain of subordinates, she and Yuuno were almost playing with their opponents, which she felt rather guilty about. the Guard had obviously not been properly prepared, were not properly led, and despite their attack, did not deserve to be toyed with like Nanoha would her Bureau students.

"This one's all set," Yuuno told her, gesturing to a Guard mage so wrapped up in green binding sigils he looked like an odd Christmas present.

"Thank you, Yuuno," Nanoha replied, shifting her own latest catch next to his, and watching as he tied the two together and sent them drifting off towards where Hayate was corralling their prisoners with the Sword of Light. So for there were twelve, all but three captured by Nanoha and Yuuno. The rest were busier pushing the Guard towards the river, where the Circle mages were just starting to get their act together, forming the net to complete the trap.

_'Nanoha, Yuuno,'_ Hayate called, _'Can you try to scry outside the containment barrier for me? I think something out there is trying to break in, but I cannot spare the attention to check.'_

_'Not a problem, Hayate,'_ Yuuno replied, _'just give me a moment to get set.'_

_'I think we've figured out their rank markings,'_ Nanoha added, _'I'll keep collecting their commanders.'_

_'No, guard Yuuno,' _ Hayate ordered, _'finding out what's going on out there is more important than getting another prisoner. It shouldn't take him long.'_

Nanoha was perfectly content with that, not that any of the Guard mages they had encountered were a threat to Yuuno. There was not enough challenge here to be interesting, just enough to be sad. The Guard were completely outclassed, despite their stubborn refusal to admit it. Even with numbers on their side, they were so rigid in their thinking that the Wolkenritter were dancing rings around them. None of the Guard had time to even try to come after her and Yuuno.

Then Yuuno gasped, and Nanoha took her attention off the battle and looked to him. He had a series of screens up, scyring beyond the containment shield. _'Hayate,'_ He said slowly, _'we have a problem. They brought the __entire city__. And a ridiculously large number of mages. There are... four hundred twenty plus, Desu is still counting. They're a ways off, a couple hundred kilometers, but closing. There's some sort of disturbance from the city, something that's trying to beak the barrier.'_

_'Another trap,'_ Hayate sighed, _'one of these days I'm going to visit Egypt without someone trying to ambush me. Can you give me an estimate on how long before they get here and break through?'_

_'Um, they're at the edge of the barrier, should break through in the next ten, twenty minutes.'_

Hayate sounded shocked, _'At the __edge__ of the barrier? You said they were a couple hundred kilometers out!'_

_'They are, at the edge of the barrier.'_

Hayate was silent for a second, and Nanoha could not help chuckling. On a private sending she said, _'I bet she never realized she set it that far out.'_

_'Sucker bet,'_ Yuuno replied.

_'Oh,'_ Hayate said after a minute, _'I didn't realize... Nanoha, Signum does not think we can take that many of them. Do you agree?'_

Nanoha did not even need to think about that, _'Well, the Guard mages we have faced so far are not particularly impressive, but... quantity has a quality all its own, as they say. That many mages would swamp us, even if none of them are any better than the kids they've fielded so far.'_

_'All right,'_ Hayate sighed, _'We can't hold here. I'm going to compress the barrier's area, then teleport us out, Circle mages and prisoners alike. I hate running away.'_

_'We'll be back,'_ Nanoha told her, _'better prepared and with better support. This may help Chrono shake the Bureau loose.'_

00000

_"The Battle of Cairo is generally accepted as the first battle of the Second Terran Mage War. The originating attack on Al Hanthis was too quick, too simple, and too one-sided to be termed a 'battle', that was just an act of provocation. Despite Cairo's status as 'first battle', however, it remains essentially meaningless, in the context of the Second Terran Mage War. Yes, many lost their homes and Egypt effectively ceased to exist as a nation, but the battle itself had no effect on the future conduct of the war._

_"Szash's initial forces consisted of those Guard mages who had spent the time in the Void as Protectors. While they maintained reserve Guard commissions, they were nowhere near meeting the standards of the pure Guard forces, and were in all ways __bait__. Esar was a Colonel by pure seniority, he had spent the preceding twenty years working solely as a Protector, serving just enough days in the Guard to maintain his seniority. The 'troops' he was given were similarly Protectors first and Guard in name only, just beginning their refresher training, and were certainly not up to par. Losing them to Hayate cost Szash very little, drew out her main opposition into showing their capabilities, and relieved her of her most troublesome troops in one coldly calculated maneuver._

_"In contrast, you had Hayate herself, along with her Knights and the Bureau volunteers. While the Bureau volunteers were more variable, the eight lead combatants, the Asura's Pride united once more, were completely on the ball. Hayate's entire contingent was highly trained, recently and extensively experienced, and prepared for the unexpected. Even the Circles, Modern and Revenant alike, were better trained, better experienced, and better coordinated, than Szash's initial forces._

_"Cairo was a case of mutual ignorance colliding. Szash dangled her initial forces as bait because she needed to know how, and how fast, Hayate and the Circles would and could respond. Then she brought up not only Al Hanthis itself, with all its hardened defenses and fixed weapons, but its entire population of mages. This allowed her to deploy the entire Guard to simultaneously defend the city and attack their enemies, an advantage she would not enjoy again during the course of the war. Hayate responded with her usual exuberance, seeking to overwhelm the Guard's initial forces and end the fighting quickly. She demonstrated just how powerful she was – not even the Emperor can seal a two kilometer sphere inside a full phase-containment barrier single-handedly, and then she teleported everyone __in__ the barrier a couple of thousand miles to southwestern __Canada__, of all places – but she failed in her effort to defend Cairo because she failed to appreciate the cunning and resources at Szash's disposal._

_"Despite all I have just said, all that both sides learned of one another and despite their various capabilities, between the battles of Cairo and Dies Irae, the Guard was never again concentrated in such numbers, while the Terran defenders were progressively better prepared. Throughout the war, Terran forces maintained an abysmal track-record and suffered heart-breaking losses, yet cost the Guard so dearly they very nearly destroyed it. No following battle was as bloodless or as quick as Cairo, yet Cairo was more decisive, tactically speaking, than any following battle short of Dies Irae itself. But none of the lessons learned in Cairo applied to future battles._

_"No, the Battle of Cairo was unimportant to the War, save that it happened, a fate suffered by many 'first battles'. The events of real import that day occurred on the far side of the world, at Yagami Academy. Szash's rash offers to Hayate's students made the war personal for them, and for Hayate. The offers took the War from an exercise in avoiding casualties to a true war on par with the preceding century's World Wars. I respect the General a great deal, she has accomplished much to admire and be proud of, but that action there earned her a special place in Hell, for what it cost everyone involved in the Second Terran Mage War."_

– the Dark Witch, personal historian to the First Emperor, as quoted in a lecture on the Terran Mage Wars at Al Hanthis Imperial University.

00000

Author's Note: Yes, well, I know it's been a while, but hopefully you haven't forgotten me. As usual, I'm sorry for the delay, but Cairo was not working out for me. Too many ideas for too many people, and a too-defined outcome. There are much more exciting things to come in the next battle, so I've found myself noting or writing snipets of that fight when I should be writing this. Ah, well, as an apology, here's a sneak-peak: next chapter, Na-chan finish their devices!

Sunspike: This is the same spell Takashi used on the pirate in the Side Story "Flight of the Old Dog". Hayate inherited it through the Sword of Light. Sarah snitched it from Takashi while he was developing it, in a series of events which will, hopefully, eventually see light in Starcrossed.

00000

Tombadgerlock: Last chapter was a lot of fun, actually. Cidela's actually one of my favorites, alongside Noriko, right behind Laura. Ekavir's issue isn't quite done yet, there's more to it plus repercussions. Should be fun, working it all out, though.

Kell Shock: The sentence when Ekavir got to the table bothered me, but that was re-write ten or twelve on one sentence. So thirteen is now up (feeling lucky?) Short version, 'volunteers beyond Reian' meant the other Bureau mages that went AWOL to help Hayate. The second years snagged the table between the volunteers & the first years, being 'protective'. I thought the anonymous review was yours, but learned long ago that acting on those guesses is embarrassing. Szash is more straight-forward than Yosho, but neither of them is really 'direct', but that'll be proven later. Their various motives will play out later, but both of them are fairly callous about 'foreigners'. Regarding Allina, Niranjana and Ekavir, I must admit, I'm actually rather enjoying dragging the poor boy through the wringer, though Niranjana shares her own part of the blame – neither of the girls is really 'pushing', yet. As for Cidela being nervous, she has a semi-rogue gift, a familiar she cares about, and no amount of 'book learning' is ever as calming as practical experience. It wasn't a matter of 'secret knowledge', more a matter of not totally trusting her sources. Also remember, she activated Hippocrates in front of her entire class, she's always been painfully shy, and she's always nervous, so those two were about half of it.

CrimsonDX: To be honest, I've been waiting to unveil Cid-chan's device since the mid-point of Academy Blues. I actually had Hippocrates fully envisioned longer than I had Paradox planned. As for Rafiq showing of, that will have to wait a little longer. Szash is well controlled, the Al Hanthean tests for Masters require it (think defending a PhD, if the reviewers were armed). Szash'll get a chance to show off her blood-thirsty side in a couple chapters. I'm sorry Ekavir's situation was unpleasant, I actually enjoyed it – mostly because I finally got to embarrass someone other than me:). Call me vicious, but I remember being in a similar situation to him, and it's nice to finally put someone else in that situation, after being put in it myself.

Lady Sekhmet Ka: Welcome to the audience, and thank you for the compliments! I'm glad you're enjoying this, and hope it lives up to your expectations.


	23. 22 Hack the Planet

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-22 – Hack the Planet-

Standing in the waiting area, arms crossed as she frowned at nothing, Szash was far less happy than she had any right to be. She had just successfully seized a major city – and a nation, for all intents and purposes. She had discovered a great deal about Al Hanthis' enemies, including the fact that they did not have the skills, confidence, or numbers to stand against her in open war. She had pulled a fast one on her enemies' most dangerous leader, and introduced an element of emotional instability into that leader's future plans. Not an hour gone, the Conclave had given her free rein to use the full resources of the Guard to bring about an end to the decades long rebellion, including an unprecedented freedom of deployment of the Guard, the Seed of Leviathan, and greater weapons. All in all, she was coming off what had to be one of the most successful weeks of her life.

Instead, she was feeling more pressure than ever, more nerves. Her people and Yosho's were still securing Cairo, but were already finding out some disturbing truths. Homeworld had billions of people on it, a ridiculous population concentration that the planet should not have been able to support without magic. She had at her disposal roughly a thousand Guard mages, another ten thousand or so Protectors , and maybe a quarter million trained adult mages that could be pressed into service, if she wanted to revert Al Hanthis to the sort of hyper-militarist society the Conclave had been created to end. The primitive local military forces were nothing, only their most indiscriminate weapons could hurt her troops and they would not use those easily. But there were millions of rebel mages, who lacked individual power but possessed the sort of fanatic hatred that resulted in insane casualties on all sides.

Those concerns were what lead her here, to the tightly secured waiting area near the very edge of the city's main platform. It was bare of decoration, plain metal walls and ceiling, floor covered with functional non-skid. Perched in the upper corners of the room were four compact turrets, just as undisguised – crude magic-accelerated projectile weapons specifically for containing what lurked beyond the blast door she had yet to approach.

The normal door, set in the side wall to the left of the blast door, slid open to admit Eri and Gali, who both looked at her, then shared a grin. "Master Adept," Eri said, "we have the first reports from the initial garrison force."

Glad of the distraction, Szash waved the two over, "Good news, I hope?"

"Mostly, ma'am," Gali answered. "Their reports are more detailed than those of the assault forces, naturally, but mostly track. The short version is, we have the city and, through the city, Egypt. There will be a refugee issue for a while, people trying to slip into other countries, especially military formations. But that should not be a sizable portion of the population, and will no doubt contain the most fractious individuals, thus removing a source of trouble."

"There is still some fighting in the warrens," Eri expanded, "apparently individual soldiers or militia troopers who won't admit they lost. Patrols are wrapping them up now. Other than the missing mages from the first wave, casualties are light, mostly younger mages who did not pay attention to their surroundings, and none of those are fatalities. The best piece of news is, we captured the airport intact. It has good land connections to the warehouse areas along the river and plenty of space for holding cargo or bringing in lighters. Once we're certain of site security, we can set up relay portals to simplify supplying Cairo and Al Hanthis even more. In fact, the force holding the airport should be ready to hand over to the Protectors by the end of this week. Some of Yosho's people are there now beginning familiarization."

"Excellent," Szash nodded "the sooner we can hand over to Yosho, the better. We don't have enough Guard to sit around holding the civilians' hands. What about future operations?"

"The first four strike teams of the second wave will be ready to go by Wednesday, but per your orders, we're holding them for training until Hong Kong," Gali said. "Though I would suggest we send the canal strike force sooner. Holding the Suez will give us long-range clout with the various governments, something to negotiate with to keep them out of Africa while we secure it. Master Inoz, one of the old pre-Void traders, has already approached several Conclave members about taking on the canal as a project, expanding it for larger vessels. It won't have long-term profitability, not once we integrate a real modern transport system, but until then, ships are still prime movers."

Szash turned it over for a few seconds, then nodded slowly, "Send the canal team... day after tomorrow, barring events. It's part of Egypt, so we can claim it outright without too much risk of outside intervention. What about the Hong Kong operation?"

"The strike force is mostly ready," Eri said slowly, frowning slightly, "but I'm still worried about its size. I understand this is not our primary focus, but I'm uncomfortable sending such a small force that far afield, even on a pure denial mission. I'd be more comfortable with a full company, ma'am."

"That's what the Seed are going along for," Szash said, then grimaced, "to be blunt, we can afford to lose the Seed if it goes wrong, we can't afford to lose a full company. Stick with two platoons, fifty mages should be plenty, so long as they aren't more of Esar's incompetents."

"Oh, the Five-oh-First are plenty good enough," Eri smiled at that, "I'm not worried there. I just..." she shrugged, "I'd be more comfortable with _all _of them, ma'am. Seed are nasty weapons, but they're limited by their excellence. Given the force limits, though, I've assigned the entire Five-oh-First to intensive simulator drills. I told them the two best platoons of their four will go to Hong Kong, so they should be giving their all. I'll pick the two platoons three days before we launch, give them a day off, then two days of intensive drill before launch."

"Sounds good," Szash agreed, "don't work them too hard, though. We'll need them at peak, if you push them too hard in the sims they'll come off edge."

"Yes ma'am," Eri chuckled a little. She had, many years ago, been the one to call Szash on that very mistake. "Are you still planning to lead the assault yourself, ma'am?"

"This one, probably the second one, as well," Szash told her. "For all their importance, the primary operations will be fairly straight-forward, even in the face of active resistance. The strike raids will be where everyone's attention is, where the most resistance is. My presence will lend credence to their threat, beyond the mere damage we inflict."

"It will also be where the best fighters and biggest challenges will be," Gali added.

Szash smirked at him, just a little, "Which only adds greater weight to the need for my presence. Five-oh-first only has three Master Adepts in it, and another four Masters. The rest are all Adepts. They've got the tactics, but an extra Master Adept can't hurt."

Both her aides gave her flat looks, and she figured Gali was going to complain, but the siren from the blast door cut him off. The blast door flashed, then the shields released and the heavy armored construct began rising into the ceiling. It was lifted by a simple telekinetic field, purely magic, rather than any number of more complicated and reliable methods, for beyond it lay the Seed of Leviathan.

A uniformed tech, in Protector uniform, stood beyond the door. "General? The first Alpha is reactivated, and ready for imprinting."

Szash grimaced distastefully, but nodded, "Lead on, journeyman."

It was not far to the reactivation bay, where two more techs were standing with a pair of Guard soldiers armed with specially made stun-batons. No magic in those, just primitive electrical currents and powerful chemical anesthetics. For most Seed, such precautions were rarely taken. For an Alpha, they were scandalously light.

The creature standing in the center of the bay was still dripping water after having the containment fluids washed off. It was huge, a quarter again larger than the standard Seed, correspondingly more massive, and Szash could feel its enhanced null-field pulling at her magic. An Alpha Seed, the smarter brethren of the standard versions, crafted to lead their fellows. In furtherance of keeping the dangerous creatures under control, Alphas had to be imprinted on specific officers that would issue them orders, otherwise they stood in place, lacking higher brain functions. A single cable lead out of the base of the creature's skull, patched into the city's control computers for initialization.

Szash studied it for a few moments, then sighed and stepped into arm's reach. Resting a bare hand in its open mouth, she stated, "Initialize, recognize Szash Freisan, commanding General of the Guard and Master Adept."

The Seed's tongue stirred, pressing into her palm, and she felt a distasteful shiver down her spine. She suppressed the reaction, especially the urge to rip her hand out of the Seed's mouth, as both responses would invite it to attack. Instead, as it sampled her DNA and processed her voice, she remained perfectly still, staring it in the eyes, willing it to obey.

The process took all of five seconds, then the Alpha stepped back, releasing her hand, and went to its knees, bowing its head to the floor. Her implants translated its response into audible speech, "DNA identification confirmed. Commanding General of the Guard recognized. Voice imprint registered. Linker core imprint registered. Alpha initialized. Awaiting orders."

"Obey Guard officers as me, recognize standard implant signals. Remain in containment facilities until dispatch to target. Mission objective is interdiction of mundane and non-magical combat forces. Prime command – do not injure any humans that are not armed and do not use magic. End order."

The Seed curled up slightly further, "By your command."

Taking a towel from the journeyman to wipe off her hand, Szash stepped out into the hall without another word. She could not get out of that room fast enough. Imprinting an Alpha was not precisely difficult, but... "Gods, I hate those things."

"They are just another weapon, ma'am," Eri chided her.

"That thing is smarter than my cat," Szash countered, stopping outside the next bay, "and nastier. It's not a weapon, it's a nightmare. If we had twice as many Guard as we do, I'd never have asked for clearance to deploy them. Those things just bother me."

"Some people react differently to the Seed," Gali said. "Unpredictable, who they disturb. Nothing to be ashamed of, ma'am."

"So long as it doesn't affect the job," Szash grimaced. "You know what bothers me the most about those things, though?"

"Ma'am?"

"Part of me wants to just turn them lose. Pick a city, unleash the Seed, let them raze it to ground in front of the entire world, then threaten to do the same elsewhere unless they all surrender."

"If we thought it would work, I would have suggested just that, ma'am," Eri offered. "I do have some issues about using the Seed, mostly given how hard they are to control in the field, but they are just weapons."

"Regardless, we're using them. Eri, make sure the rest of the initial wave are ready to go by sundown tomorrow," Szash ordered, staring at the next Alpha waiting for her. Technically, she could have had subordinates imprint the Alphas, but that would have felt like skirting her responsibilities. Whoever the Alpha was imprinted to was responsible for that Alpha's actions, and the actions of its subordinates. "I'm going to be stuck down here the rest of the day imprinting, but should have all four hundred Alphas done by deployment time. Let me know once the transport arrangements are made, or if you run into any problems you need my rank to solve."

Eri and Gali saluted and left leaving Szash to face the next Alpha. Steeling her nerves, she walked in, set her hand in its mouth, and repeated, "Initialize, recognize Szash Freisan, commanding General of the Guard and Master Adept."

00000

As evening settled on the valley the day after Cairo, Signum found Hayate in the strangest place – the mouth of the cave, a ways above the northern pass. The February before, the children had counter-attacked Li's assault from here, and the pass itself still bore the scars of that battle. The rocks leading from the pass to the cave were scarred and scoured from Noriko's Cascade, and the blast crater Laura's Positron Buster had left was plainly visible, soil blasted away to bare rock.

Approaching quietly, she asked, "Hayate-sama? Are you all right?"

Hayate looked over at her, then gave her a small smile. "Yes, Signum, I'm fine. Just thinking."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Hayate chuckled slightly, "I'm not brooding again, Signum. I'm thinking."

"Apologies," Signum said, "but this is a fairly depressing spot to think."

"Do you really think so?"

"The children went to battle from here," Signum replied, "gave up some of their innocence and childhood."

"True," Hayate said, "but more importantly, they _chose _to do that. Oh, the battle was forced on them, but they chose to counter-attack instead of fleeing. That may not have been the proper choice, what they should have done in the legal sense, but I think they chose the better course. I'm not up here wondering why, I'm reminding myself what my kids can do, how strong they are. Also, I'm wondering what Szash's next move is going to be. She has more mages than we do, but not enough to really conquer the planet. Those offers she made were bad, but too clumsy to be a real espionage attempt. She's up to something. How are the children dealing with it?"

Signum settled into place next to Hayate, trying to find what Hayate saw in the pass. "Well, Laura and Chen-chi organized a lottery to see how they are going to 'chastise' Szash for her insults. Noriko's idea seems to be the most popular, trying her for 'inducement to treason'. Based on the children's nationalities, Toushiro figures they can have her charged in every country in the world. Laura is insisting that she will be the one to take on Szash. She doesn't trust the others not to go too far. Mostly it sounds like them being them. The only one that truly worries me is Natalia. She is taking Szash's offer rather badly."

"How so?" Hayate frowned, "I have been trying to keep an eye on her without pressuring her, but..."

"Hmm, Shamal is more aware of it than I am," Signum said, "she has been speaking with each of the students about this afternoon. I am not worried about Natalia accepting the offer, quite the opposite. The problem is, she is not joining in the plotting with the other children, but sitting off to one side, working on plans. Shamal and I fear she may give in to her anger and try something on her own. Shamal will discuss the matter in detail when you have time, but Natalia is the only worry I have there."

"I'll talk to Shamal in the morning," Hayate said, "about all of them. I'm not sure I like the idea of the kids trying to take on Szash single-handed, I want Nanoha and Yuuno facing her, they should be more than enough. What about our prisoners?"

"Hughes is looking for a place to put them," Signum answered. "Unfortunately, for the moment the only safe place is in the smaller workrooms here. Your bindings are solid, but they can be broken, and Hughes does not have any sealed cells available, not strong ones, at least. He will probably have to make them. Until then, except for Esar, we will hold the prisoners here. Noriko has left a message with her father, inquiring about the possibility of the Japanese government holding them, but he has not answered yet."

"And Esar?"

Signum hesitated on that question, knowing Hayate would not like the answer. "He remains at Tokyo University Hospital, sedated, with Vita guarding him. He will lose the arm, just below the elbow. There is nothing left alive below the elbow, nothing to take Shamal's healing. Other than that, he will heal normally in a few weeks. Shamal thinks she and Cid-chan may be able to trigger true regeneration, to re-grow the arm, but she is not sure."

"Tell her not to worry about him, at least not now," Hayate said, then sighed. "We have come to war, and that necessitates hard choices. We need her energies focused on keeping us healthy, not on prisoners who are otherwise stable. When Hughes finds a place for the prisoners, have Esar transferred with them."

"Noted," Signum replied. "There is some good news, however. Once Szash left, the children – the second-years, I should say – spent the rest of the day working on their devices. Allina and Niranjana are running the final tests over night, and the rest should be done in a few days, barring problems in the tests. The children will be fully able to defend themselves by the end of next week."

Hayate actually grimaced at that, "You and I both know that isn't what will happen, Signum. I chose my students well, and they won't stand for being left behind any more."

"They'll make us all proud, Hayate-sama," Signum said, resting a comforting hand on Hayate's shoulder. "They know the risks, and have all accepted them. They know their skills, they will soon know their limits. By the time we need them, they will be just as ready as you were, as ready as Nanoha was, when your times came. I won't say we have nothing to worry about, but they are as ready as it is humanly possible to make them."

"I know. I guess it just doesn't sit well. I'm going to have to speak with Lindy-san, about how she dealt with sending Chrono, Nanoha, and Fate out before she retired. Speaking of whom, any word?"

"She is still thinking it over," Signum answered. "She has not been practicing magic very much these past few years, and wants to be sure she hasn't forgotten anything."

Hayate laughed at that idea, "Lindy Hallaoun forget something? I'd sooner expect you to misplace Levantine. But I think I understand. She loves Uminari City, and wants to be certain it will be safe in her absence. She'll come, eventually."

"Eventually. Among other good news, Aignu let me know that a few more Enforcers have 'slipped past' the blockade. They should be here in the morning, bringing our total to thirteen, plus Nanoha, Fate, and Yuuno."

Hayate frowned at that, thoughtfully, then asked, "Do we know their ranks?"

"Mostly lower officers and enlisted again, the higher ranking Enforcers seem to think they can do more good trying to get the Bureau moving," Signum replied. "Apparently, High Command is receiving a record amount of protests from officers or all levels. This new batch, however, consists of one lieutenant, two more ensigns, and a pair of chief petty officers. All A or B rank."

"Hmmm, would you handle welcoming them, please? Make sure they're comfortable working under Reian. I know he's only an ensign, but I know him better than the others, and," she shrugged, "well, the boy deserves some recognition."

"Boy? He's a year or so older than you, Mistress."

Hayate blushed at that, "I know, but he's still... young. Like most of my kids. Which is another reason to leave him in charge of the volunteers – the kids already know him, at least a little, and he knows the Circles. If the newcomers were higher ranks, I'd have to let them lead the volunteers, but as it is... Reian stays in command."

"I'll make that clear," Signum agreed.

"I suppose now we should get back, I need to help Shamal with dinner."

"Cid-chan is up at the house tonight," Signum told her, then smiled slightly. "I think she does not quite believe us that none of us were injured."

Hayate chuckled at that, the girl had been trying to scan each of them ever since they returned from Cairo. "Probably. Still, let's get back. I need to talk to Aria and Lotte about testing Allina's and Niranjana's devices, and we all need to talk about classes. I'm thinking of having us all modify our lesson plans, shift to an ad hoc, more fluid schedule. We're going to be frequently distracted, especially me, and I don't want the children's education to suffer for it. Maybe combine the two years, somehow? We'll discuss it over dinner."

"That should prove interesting. Nanoha was inquiring if we wanted her help teaching during the down-times. She even hinted at tackling getting the Trio to actually work together."

Hayate actually shuddered at that, "Can you imagine her and Laura sparring? I don't think our insurance would cover it!"

"Yes it would," Signum chuckled. "The term is 'other acts of God', under natural disasters."

00000

Allina was perfectly well aware of how nervous Cid-chan had been before activating Hippocrates, and she remembered Noriko and Laura before their activation ceremonies. She could even understand their worries and sympathize. All devices were complicated machines, and hers and 'Jana's were experimental on top of that. But as far as activating the devices, Allina was anything but nervous. Aware of potential problems, yes, but not nervous.

What had her nervous was what would come after that, the test of capability and strength to prove the new device. The test itself was not even what bothered her. Rather it was the fact that, of the magic she knew, nothing was nearly as impressive as what Laura, Noriko, and Yussef had demonstrated the year before, or what Cid-chan had shown a few days previously. Everything Allina knew was computer related, and while she understood just how powerful Gatecrasher would be with an intelligent device driving it, it would be difficult to show that in class.

In her typical fashion, when a challenge got stuck in her head, she decided to fix it, however long it took. So the night of the battle of Cairo, she stayed up all night futzing with copies of her device programming, trying to plot out spells she would be comfortable with, or figure some way to use a device to hack into a computer, with no prior experience or guide. The fact that she had done the same thing the night before – translating Terran computer code into Midchildan programming – did not even occur to her. So she was staring at her screen, starting to seriously space out, and remembering for the third time that she was out of wakefulness-inducing sugar, when Niranjana sent her a message.

'Go to sleep, Allina-chan.'

She had to blink at it a few times for it to register. Then she looked at her clock – three twenty-two in the morning. So she sent back, 'Go to sleep yourself, 'Jana-chan. Big day tomorrow.'

'I'll go when you do.'

'Can't sleep, clown'll eat me,' Allina shot back, then felt guilty for some reason. 'Seriously, worrying at stuff, this helps distract me.'

'We will be fine THIS AFTERNOON,' 'Jana replied. 'Sleep now, you need it after last night.'

'How would you know?'

'Because you were up before me. As for now, I set an alarm to wake me, and sent the first message as a test. One you failed. Go to sleep.'

'But I'm awake now. If I try to go to bed, I'll just lay there and worry. Hey, I've got a new exploit I want to try on the World Bank, want to give it a run?'

There was a longer pause, and Allina could almost hear 'Jana sighing heavily. 'No, Allina, I am not interested in committing an international felony at three in the morning. I am going to sleep. After sending a note to Tai-yu-sensei. Go to sleep. I know you have to be out of pocky by now, so you are going to crash just before class starts, aren't you? Then where will you be when the activation time arrives? Go to sleep, Allina-chan.'

'But I'm up now.' Allina knew it was feeble protesting, but she had never liked being sent to bed, though it was nice that 'Jana cared.

'You are so stubborn. That's it, I'm waking up Cid-chan and telling her you're complaining about being too nervous to sleep. If you aren't in bed when she puts you out, you'll be very embarrassed in the morning.'

Then 'Jana did something Allina completely did not expect – she hacked Allina's computer. A series of windows flickered open, processed, and closed, ten or twenty in under a second. Allina saw just enough to recognize a BIOS hack, had enough time to squawk in outrage, and her computer shut itself down. It was followed less than a minute later by her PDA, leaving her sitting in darkness, shocked out of her gourd.

"My sister just rolled me," she muttered.

_'You don't need to worry about tomorrow, Allina-chan,'_ Cid-chan whispered mentally, _'but I understand. Good night.'_

The next thing Allina knew, someone was shaking her. Her neck and back hurt, and her arm was numb from elbow to fingers. It took her a bit to get her brain to boot up, and by then she was blinking up, wondering what Tai-yu-sensei was doing in her room, and who had turned the lights on.

"It's time to get up, Allina," Tai-yu told her, "you just have time to shower and dress before breakfast finishes."

Allina managed a brilliant, "Huh?"

"Time, Allina-chan," 'Jana told her from the doorway, "you need a shower."

"Time... gah! You! You hacked my desktop! And my PDA!"

'Jana frowned at her slightly. "I only powered them down, and set the reboot to a timer. They should be back on now."

"Who cares about that!" Energized by the memory, Allina could not help pouncing on 'Jana and wrapping her up in a hug, spinning the two of them about madly, "I'm so proud of you! My 'Jana snuck one past the master! We have to celebrate!"

"Later," Tai-yu said, "you have class, for which you need to be dressed, and I would recommend a shower first. Go on, off with you."

"I'll meet you in the cafeteria," 'Jana promised.

Throughout the day, 'Jana resisted all further attempts to celebrate her success, until finally Lotte-sensei's class came around. By that time, Allina was truly feeling the effects of having stayed up all night two nights in a row – _most _of two nights in a row – and was seriously dragging. Not enough to keep her from dragging 'Jana along to Lotte-sensei's class after Hayate-sensei finally let them go, but enough to be looking forward to lights-out. 'Jana protested, but only a little, more over Allina's man-handling her than the pace, so they were not the first ones there, Toushiro won that honor, then ruined his victory by waiting around to hold the door open for them.

Lotte and Aria were waiting, with both nascent devices in their cradles, and a pair of other devices, in storage mode, floating above stands of their own. Allina considered those for a second, then shrugged and went for the nearer device, checking it over quickly, as everyone else arrived.

"Allina-chan," 'Jana protested, "that's my device."

"Uh-huh," Allina muttered, not really paying attention, "last checks."

"That is my device," 'Jana repeated.

"Yeah. Check mine, please?"

'Jana muttered something, then strode over and to look over Allina's device, while someone else chuckled at them. It only took a minute to verify that the devices had taken no harm from their move, and then 'Jana took away any more delaying tactics. "We're ready, Lotte-sensei."

Lotte-sensei grinned at them, but her tail was going a mile a second, "Well, don't let me keep you. One of you go first, then the other, device and barrier jacket."

Allina started to tell 'Jana to go first, but her sister beat her too it, "Go ahead, Allina-chan." Polite enough, but followed up by a mental, _'You'll fall asleep if you have to wait for me to finish.'_

Allina glared at her a second, but could not really remain angry, given that it was possibly true. So she stepped past 'Jana, gave her a playful little shove towards her own device, then turned back to her own. Reaching out a tendril of magic, she felt an instant response, an echo of her own power. It hesitated, floating out there just out of her reach, and she frowned. She thought it was supposed to do more than that, to begin reacting even as it showed her the activation command. But, since none was forthcoming from the device, she ordered, "Initialize Human Augmentation and Logical system, full system boot," the power reacted, flowing back into her _merging_, somehow, with her linker core, "access primary data-store, upload code packet," she had a weird feeling of vertigo in a storm, as raw information was suddenly pouring past her into the device, even as the glow flashed too bright to see, "authenticate, Allina Maricopa, Darth Acker."

"System boot complete," an oddly inflected male voice stated, as a weight settled on her left arm, "authentication verified. Good morning, Allina."

Her vision faded back to normal, and Allina could not help grinning down at her arm. Her device had settled into a sleek dark gray bracer, a screen on the back, and a cylindrical one-handed keyboard folded underneath. A two inch white crystal was set just next to the screen, by her elbow, glowing slightly. "Good morning, HAL," she answered, fingering the screen gently.

"Oh, crap," Laura called, "you designed it to hack devices, _then named it HAL_?! You're insane!"

Allina just laughed, still delighting in the feel of it. She could sense information, data-flow, coming from outside, accessed by HAL, and the sheer possibilities were intoxicating. Information, power in its truest form, was floating about her now, available for instant access, and she began to see why people were so afraid of hackers like herself. She could, with HAL's help, do almost anything...

"Allina," Lotte-sensei's voice interrupted, "you were supposed to call up your armor as well."

It took an effort to tear her attention away from the flood of data, and for a second, she just blinked at Lotte-sensei. Then she noticed 'Jana giving her a knowing smirk, and blushed in embarrassment. "Sorry, sensei. HAL, ICE."

"Yes, Allina," HAL replied, in his agreeably mellow voice that made Laura shiver. Power flowed over her from the bracer, leaving a lighter gray jumpsuit in its wake, under a gray jacket and shorts the same shade as the bracer. A matching bracer – sans screen and keyboard – appeared on her right arm, and similar boots replaced her shoes. The final touch was a head band with ear-buds and a boom-microphone, holding her hair out of the way.

"Barrier jacket up, sensei," Allina told her.

"Ice?"

"ICE," Allina corrected, "for Intrusion Countermeaures. Seems appropriate for my habits, ne?"

"Truly," Lotte-sensei agreed, prowling around her to poke and prod at various spots. Allina felt each touch, but at a remove, like through a heavy coat and lots of layers of clothes. The feeling was made stranger by the fact that she could see Lotte-sensei's finger pressing against her, apparently only a thin piece of spandex or cloth jacket between them. "All right, not bad, not bad. You'll have to explain why HAL bothers Laura so much, but that's for gossip later. For now," the cat-woman turned her predatory smirk on 'Jana, "It's time for someone else to step up."

00000

Niranjana had actually been rather enjoying watching Allina sweat the past few days. It was a little petty, and made her feel a little guilty as well, but the other girl deserved it. She had tried several times to get Allina alone and talk about how she felt, what they were, all the things Noriko had recommended. Instead, whenever they were not discussing their devices, Allina was obsessing over her latest side-project of getting into the World Bank.

More insulting, Allina had apparently said something to Ekavir, and he was now avoiding Niranjana. Not completely, and less successfully because she knew he still needed help in some areas, but he was trying to avoid her. Something about it made it clear to Niranjana that Allina was at fault for that. Despite how she felt about Allina, Niranjana was not about to let someone else go picking her friends.

She was not really mad at Allina, but she was enjoying watching the other girl discomfited. Despite that, the look of rapture on Allina's face as HAL stabilized and woke was just too true, and too cute, for frustration to win. It was obvious to Niranjana that the communications arrays worked as planned, at least basically, and Allina was reveling in the data stream.

Lotte's challenging grin failed to make her nervous, though. Niranjana had ample evidence that her design worked fine, after all, given Allina's success. So Niranjana merely rested a hand on her device's processor core, and uttered the short prayer she had chosen to activate the device. "Vidyaa gyaana pradaayinii, jaga mein gyaana prakaasha bharo moha aura ajnaana timira kaa jaga se naasha karo. Please aide my learning, Saraswati."

Cute as Allina's face had been when HAL woke, Niranjana was not prepared for the sheer torrent of data. As it was programmed to, even as the device imprinted her linker core, Saraswati accessed the workroom's monitoring computers. Through those it patched into the school's Yggdrasil network, then out to the entire internet. It was not, as she had half expected, flowing directly into her mind, but rather was there for the taking, at the speed of thought. Screens flickered in and out around her, showing data on her device, the school, the world, the movie 2001, Hindu religion, Allina, Al Hanthis… anything that popped into her mind during the few seconds Saraswati required to activate and calibrate itself. The sensation was almost enough for her to miss the feel of the device imprinting off her linker core.

When the data-stream slowed and the glow faded, Niranjana found Saraswati had settled into an odd pair of gloves, soft and flexible but covered in wires, and a pair of full-coverage wrap-around glasses tinted orange. She could feel some sort of metalwork coming off the ear-pieces to cover her cheeks, and more across her forehead, which proved to hold a small orange gemstone. She had to shake her head a few times, to reassure herself that everything would stay in place.

Lotte-sensei did not have to remind her to call her armor. Once she was sure the activation was complete, she requested, "Saraswati, Wards and Signs, please." There was no verbal response from her device, which worried her slightly, just a cascade of energies. When it cleared, her school uniform had been replaced by a deep blue Hindu festival dress, picked out with prayers to Saraswati in gold, all of it looking decidedly non-armor-ish.

"Very pretty, Niranjana," Lotte-sensei told her, inspecting Niranjana as she had Allina. "Seems effective too, though a little on the light side."

"I am not a warrior, sensei," Niranjana told her. "Saraswati is to help me control my magic and provide support to my programming efforts. This should suffice to protect me from any accidents, and to let me escape any battle."

Lotte-sensei nodded with that, "Understandable. Mean's you'll have to be quicker with the shields, if you do get caught in a fight. All the better, though, it fits you. Now, Hayate-sama has a test of her own for you, though from the frown on her face, you've already done part of it. Mistress?"

"Thank you, Lotte," Hayate said. "Girls, given what you were trying to accomplish with your devices, we decided on three initial tests, to establish a base-line of how your devices communicate with other systems, how vulnerable they and other devices will be. The first of them, you both seem to have done automatically, gaining outside access to the net from within the workroom."

"We worked out some programming that couldn't be safely loaded until the devices were initialized, Hayate-sensei," Allina explained. "Left the download packets on my Beowulf back home, then used the workroom's monitoring computers to establish a connection."

"You turned the monitors into a communications node?"

"They already are, Hayate-sensei," Niranjana said, "the sensors include maintenance links similar to those used in devices, for monitoring devices and testing the workroom systems themselves." Then she frowned, "Yggdrasil was not very well secured from this side, however."

Hayate shook her head, smiling slightly, "Yggdrasil recognized your devices, which are authorized to route through her to the school's network. All your devices are recognized by Yggdrasil, due to the continuous monitoring and testing during construction. So, that was supposed to be the second test. The first test is, can your devices communicate with each other?"

"That... is a good question, sensei," Niranjana said, sharing a glance with Allina. She did not know either. They shared a shrug, and turned to their new devices. As Allina began tapping at the screen on her bracer, Niranjana asked, "Saraswati, please list all external hosts."

Again her device did not give a verbal response, but generated a small screen. A cursor blinked for a moment, then the list filled, its contents surprising her enough that Allina answered first. "Yeah, sensei, we're connected. Not much data at the moment, just a carrier, essentially, but HAL's linked to Saraswati."

Hayate gave Niranjana a questioning look, "Niranjana?"

"Um... I am also showing full connection, but..." she trailed off, then sighed and began reading. "Host Yggdrasil, connection limited, authentication successful, student. Host Human Augmentation and Logical system, connection full, authentication successful, administrator. Host Sword of Light, connection refused, authentication failed. Host unknown, connection refused, authentication failed. There are nine more unknown hosts, all connection refused, authentication failed. I'm sorry, sensei, I didn't mean to try and access anyone else's devices."

"It's the wireless protocols we based the programming on," Allina reminded her, "automatically find and attempt to connect to all hosts in range." Then Allina frowned, "But how come HAL didn't give me... oh, he listed active connections, not hosts. We probably just need to work out how the protocols translated..."

"Allina-chan," Niranjana interrupted, "we can work on that later. We need to verify the cloud array works."

"'Kay, how?"

"Hayate-sensei?"

"You should be able to access several areas of the school network via Yggdrasil," Hayate told them, "I would like each of you to do so separately, bring up a specific document. I will name for you, and send it to each other. Whenever you are ready girls." _'Niranjana, I would like you to access Allina's PDA and bring up the paper she is working on for Shamal's biology unit.'_

_'Hai, sensei,'_ she replied mentally, then set to work. It was not precisely difficult, finding the requisite document. Allina's PDA was almost as familiar to her as her own, and she had just been in it the night before. Allina had made some improvements in its defenses, but hardly enough to make a difference. The only problem was, Allina did no writing on her school PDA, preferring the full-size keyboard of her desktop. Only when complete were they loaded to her PDA. The desktop was even easier, given it was where Allina left most of her personal programs and thus was quite familiar to Niranjana.

"Done, Hayate-sensei," Allina caroled, "Saraswati has the paper."

Niranjana was taking a little longer mostly due to curiosity. There was an immediacy to accessing the Net through her device that was strange, but not uncomfortable. Instead of reading a screen, or scanning a printout, the information was simply there, vaguely, in the back of her mind, until focusing on it woke a screen to display it. Even with the distraction, though, she noticed receipt of her own physics paper, and handed off Allina's paper as easily as she would have physically. "I am also finished, Hayate-sensei."

Allina blinked as a screen opened up next to her, then blanched, "Gah, 'Jana-chan! Where'd you find that?"

"On your computer, with your other homework," Niranjan said, confused.

Lotte-sensei leaned over Allina's shoulder as the girl tried to hide the screen, then chuckled, "That's due tomorrow, chibi-ko, you might want to put more on there than a title."

"I was planning to work on it tonight! It's just ten pages!"

"Regardless," Hayate interrupted, smiling slightly at Allina's antics, "that is the first test passed. So, on to the third test. You see the two dormant devices. I know we discussed your attempts to access a device, and while I am loathe to encourage you, I am even more concerned that someone else may have the same idea, especially with Al Hanthis' return. We have only a vague idea of how they achieve the greater magical effects they do, for they have shown nothing resembling a device. So, we have here a pair of the devices Admiral Aignu loaned us. Both have been partially activated, a maintenance and testing status where they have a minimal power reserve and their programming is live, but they are not tied to any linker core. Each of you is to attempt to gain access to one of these devices. We will see how far you get on a first try. Whenever you are ready."

00000

Allina expected the third test to be difficult. This was, to her knowledge, the first time someone had tried to forcibly access and control a device using another device. She figured that, with her custom programming, HAL would be better placed to attack than the dormant device was placed to defend itself. Sorting one of the dormant devices out of the crowd took a few seconds, but it had all the standard maintenance links in place.

Bringing up a screen for display, she swung the keyboard into position. HAL's keyboard was one she had seen, but never built, a one-handed cylinder with a number of clickers under each joint, different combinations generating different letters. Using it in place of a regular keyboard was more than a little strange, so she was much slower than she was used to, but HAL proved very forgiving. She accessed the dormant device's maintenance links, bluffing her way past the recognition protocols with an 'emergency system check', snitched from the standard Bureau maintenance manuals. The maintenance links opened, a connection formed... and she was promptly ejected. No warnings, no re-authentication requests, simply ejected from the device's systems.

Grumbling to herself, she had HAL resume trying a direct access, and brought up a second screen to study what had happened. It took her a few minutes, while screens flickered and flashed around 'Jana-chan, and silence reigned among her teachers and classmates. The results of HAL's repeated attempts soon clarified the issue, and she almost glared at Hayate-sensei. _That's cheating,_ she thought. "'Jana-chan, they're hardened. Extra access protocols just after the maintenance links engage. Try to brute-force yours, I'll try an overflow."

"Brute-force is failing," Niranjana answered immediately, "Saraswati is having to spoof her identity already to repeat access attempts."

"Let's see how an overflow attack works," Allina replied. The concept was simple enough – flood the target access point with data until its memory buffers overloaded and it crashed. Simple in concept, but thirty seconds later the dormant device was still non-reactive. It had not severed the connection this time, but Allina could get no further.

Thinking it over, she decided to cheat a little, _''Jana-chan, lend me a hand? I've got a stable connection, see if you can trigger some sort of override, run every emergency code we could snitch while I hold the line open?'_

_'We are supposed to be doing this individually,'_ 'Jana-chan protested.

_'Yeah, but what Hayate-sensei doesn't know won't hurt us,'_ Allina countered, _'I'll help you with yours.'_

_'That is cheating, Allina-chan.'_

_'So was hardening the devices without letting us see how an unhardened device works. Come on, 'Jana-chan, just this once? Please? I promise not to stay up all weekend this weekend.'_

Niranjana sighed, shot her a dirty look, then side-stepped the issue. "Hayate-sensei, we will need quite a bit more time to study the issues, if we are going to subvert the defenses on these devices. Allina-chan has an idea that may work, but would require the two of us to cooperate. May we?"

Hayate thought it over for a minute, then nodded slowly, "go ahead."

Saraswati linked with HAL, and that was an odd feeling for Allina. The constant flow of data through HAL was suddenly echoed and then some, the echoes interacting and linking off one another. The effect was distracting enough that she barely noticed the bursts of code Niranjana sent into the dormant device. She was still distracted by the data-flow when Niranjana announced, "I have access, sensei, but very limited. The maintenance systems are apparently only capable of observation, not action. External repair of this device is impossible, it would have to be de-powered, reprogrammed, and possibly physically restructured."

"Mostly true," Hayate agreed, "and good job, I was not sure you would be able to breach the special access protocols. For all of your information," she turned to the class, "the changes Aria and Vita made to these two devices are now standard. You will all – even Cid-chan, Niranjana, and Allina – have to alter your devices along the same lines. It is minor, mostly a matter of programming, and will make device maintenance more difficult, but it will also protect you against attempts such as what you just witnessed. Niranjana and Allina are mostly trustworthy, but we cannot be sure the Al Hantheans cannot mimic what your classmates just did. My devices, and your teachers' devices, have already been modified."

"Ano, sensei?" Noriko held up a hand, "What about us?"

Aria answered that on, "I am afraid that, given the uniqueness of your devices, we are going to have to be extremely cautious about modifying Senbonzakura, Zulfiqar, and Paradox. While most of the changes are software, there are two physical alterations necessary to separate the maintenance links from control processes. They should not affect the three of you, but we still do not fully understand your bonds. We will test your devices, see if it can be done safely."

"If not," Hayate continued, "I'm sure Niranjana and Allina will be more than willing to help you develop counter-intrusion measures." She turned back to the two, giving them a larger smile, "if only to keep up to date with what the other side is doing."

Allina laughed outright at that, "Already ahead of you, Hayate-sensei. We've got a slew of ideas for counter-hacking."

"We do need to test them, however," Niranjana added.

"Only with the device user's permission," Hayate's smile faded into a frown. "I know this is going to sound harsh, girls, but you cannot, under any circumstances, attempt to access another device, not even a dormant one like these test devices, without the owner's permission. I know you want to see how much you can accomplish, but I cannot condone or allow attacks on a device."

"We won't, Hayate-sensei," Allina promised. "To be honest, I'm not really all that interested in hacking a device. It's just, they're the best defended computers around, so if I can crack one of those, like 'Jana-chan and I just did, I can crack anything! Like, I think I might be able to access the _Shiva_'s systems without her crew noticing."

For some reason, Hayate looked more worried after she said that.

00000

Author's Note: I know this chapter didn't have enough 'action', but I'm saving it up. There's a little more set-up before Hong Kong happens (mostly getting everyone's devices up, and some political maneuvering with the Circles and Al Hanthis). The prayer Niranjana uses is an actual Hindu prayer to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge (among other things), whom she named her device after. It translates to: O bestower of learning and skill, illumine the world with light of knowledge and dispel the darkness of ignorance and infatuation. Below are some quick definitions of the terms Niranjana and Allina used in their attempts to hack the dormant devices.

'Hosts': Any piece of hardware that shows up on a network. A fairly general term in networking, usually refers to actual computers (workstations, PCs, servers, etc), but can be used for routers and (in one case I saw) switches.

'Cloud Array': The last few years IBM has been pushing 'cloud computing' which uses processing power, memory, data, and programs from various physically scattered computers instead of a single machine. Google Docs is a basic form of cloud computing. The 'cloud array' in this case is using Saraswati and HAL to do joint processing. The document retrieval test did not demonstrate it, but the combined attack on the device did.

'Brute Force': a method of bypassing a computer's authentication by simply firing login IDs and passwords at it until one works. These attacks are why most computers these days have a three-attempt limit on passwords before locking an ID. A simple attack, simply defended against.

'Overflow': All network protocols rely on memory buffers, parts of the computer's memory set aside to hold incoming, outgoing, and in-process data. An overflow attack attempts to overload those buffers, causing the network protocols to error out (and thus miss unauthorized or inappropriate activity) or to crash outright.

'Spoof': When one computer claims to be another computer. Most frequently used at a fairly basic addressing level, spoofing is done to convince an attacked system that the attacker is a trusted system, thus lowering the attacked system's security.

00000

AceStarLeaf: Thank you for the compliment. Here's the next chapter, a little quicker this time. Thanks for reading!

CrimsonDX: All I will say about who the 'Dark Witch' and 'First Emperor' are is, they've already been introduced under different names. As for Hayate and Co coming out on top, are you certain? How often in history have the victors honored and respected the defeated? Even today, General Lee is one of the most respected military officers in US history, despite technically being a traitor. Rommel gets much the same treatment, as does Hannibal (the Carthaginian general, not the fictional murderer). As for Szash being a bitch, this is true, but there are reasons. The double-agent idea would be good, but those take time to set up properly, and while this will take a while 'in story', it won't take that long. Hayate did almost accidentally kill Esar, precisely because she was just as surprised at his lack of barrier jacket as you were. The floating shields that surrounded him are the Al Hanthis equivalent, but not as thorough. It's supposed to illustrate the differences between the Bureau approach to magic and the Al Hanthean's. The mobility of Al Hanthis is a major advantage, yes, but it can still only be in one place at a time, and moving it is not as easy as the Battle of Cairo makes it seem – remember, the city started about a day's drive south-west of Cairo, which isn't very far on a planetary scale. As for referring to Reinforce as a 'he', are you sure it was not a reference to Ensign Reian? I've caught myself confusing them, thanks to how Hayate refers to Reinfroce II in the first couple episodes of StrikerS still haven't gotten past episode five… sigh).

Tombadgerlock: The Guard in Cairo were Szash's sacrificial lambs. The Five-oh-First, on the other hand, are going to be rather more dangerous. As for the Emperor, please see my comment to CrimsonDX above:).

Skyforger: Please don't wear a hole in your floor, it might freak people out:). The group at Cairo was 'sub-par', but a real challenge will come up soon. That one's going to take a couple chapters to tell, but should be fun. The 400 was how many mages Desu (Yuuno's new device) counted in first scanning. Szash's real available numbers are recounted above – a little under 1,000 Guard mages trained for combat, and another 10,000 Protectors of less militant ability. Still, there are ways to conquer large numbers with small (Cortez and Pizaro, for particularly nasty examples). Szash and her aides hinted at the strategy above, it should be clearly detailed after Hong Kong.

pfeil: yes, to my embarrassment, you are right – it was supposed to be 'quantity has a quality all its own', which error has now been corrected. All I can say is, the backwards version I originally posted is my usual response when someone says the true quote. You'll be seeing more of the Sword of Light, as the battles progress, and if you liked the tactics in Cairo, what's coming should be even better.

Baughn: Last chapter was really difficult to write. I got ahead of myself, basically – I planned to have the Battle of Cairo, but didn't plan it out at all until I had to write it. Then I almost gave away too much in Szash's appearance. You are probably right about the too-long sentences, and I tried to simplify in this chapter. I tend to think in long sentences, though. Given the example you used, I probably would have broken the comment about Natalia into a separate sentence, and left the rest. As far as relative power level, do remember that only bits of StrikerS are applicable to the Deva series (it's AU as of the end of Nanoha As, so no Vivio). The Al Hanthean's have some distinct advantages, but most of them are in terms of artificial aids, such as the Jewel Seeds. The 'Sieretz Cannon' the Reveants attacked the city with, for instance, is a little shy of the Bureau's l'Arc-en-Ciel, when properly set up and powered (the Revenants did not have it properly _anything_). The thing is, from my perspective, the Bureau went in another direction with their magic development, so there are differences such as the Al Hanthean's shield-cloud versus the Bureau's barrier jackets. The shields are more efficient and can be layered and manipulated more easily, the jackets do not require any conscious maintenance on the wearer's part. There will be a few more such differences showing up as things go on. I'm not sure how cyborged out Subaru was, but from what I've heard, she was more cyborg than the Al Hantheans are. Again, more details on that will be revealed in-story. With Yellowstone, how do you know the Containment folks aren't the ones keeping the volcano from erupting? They may also be counting on such an eruption to destroy or permanently contain the stored artifacts, as well. I don't use Reinforce as a teacher for several reasons, mostly based on how uncertain I am of just how separate she is from Hayate. Remember, a Deva device and its wielder are one, in many ways. The 'new' Reinforce may very well be a subconscious projection of Hayate's, rather than a truly independent entity – I'm uncertain as of now which. The Al Hantheans could probably help Natalia with her eye, but the question is, would she trust anyone who threatened her brother? As far as Laura referring to herself as a paladin, it's not fully realized yet, but Laura's a romantic (in the literary sense) – she thinks in terms of the idealized meaning of a chivalrous defender, not the modern anti-Christian image of hateful monsters. And since when has Laura _not _been a loose cannon? Thanks for the review!

Kell Shock: You are correct, the 'north' should have been non-capitalized. There was another format error there as well (a one-space tab, of all the weird typos) which may have triggered OpenOffice's auto-formatting. I've been putting in references to series and movies I like, such as the 'Mister Morden' line, but not many people have noticed them yet. I generally put them in for my own amusement, more than anything else, though there's an overdoes in this chapter. As noted in last chapter's future-quote, the city itself won't move very often – it's harder to do than it appears. On the other hand, a thousand battle-mages is a formidable force, especially if they're better than Esar's troops. I do have some plans for how Al Hanthis will secure its territory, and how they will go about conquering the world – it's not as quick a process as most of you seem to be thinking, though. A simplified threat-assessment on Szash's part is above.

Jack Inqu: I'm glad you've enjoyed this series, thank for reading and for the review. Your predictions are interesting, but all I can say right now is, the second one (about Hayate & Co's showing) is true enough, and third one is partially true. There are some twists yet to come, on military and political fronts, that should throw your predictions back and forth (at least, I hope they will – I hate being predictable:).

MaZe-Pallas: You are correct about the quality/quantity quote in last chapter, it should have been the other way 'round. All fixed now. It may take me a while to post a chapter, but so far I've only failed to complete on story I've posted, and I still think about going back to that one if I can ever get inspiration again. Thanks for the review!

Advent000: The Battle of Cairo was meant to be a draw, due precisely to the reasons you mentioned. Both sides got something, but neither side got what they were really after. The future-quotes are both fun and aggravating. I like using them, because they give the story a sense of grandeur and historical impact. At the same time, I've had to play some very obvious games to keep from completely spoiling the plot, which is a pain. As far as who the Dark Witch is, your guess is off. The US media have pegged Laura with the moniker Black Witch, not Dark Witch, thanks to her armor and her refusal to put up with them, though the Dark Witch is one of Hayate's students.

A006: Thank you very much for the compliments, and for the review. I'll try to keep up the standard. As for your specific points, here you go... 1) The 'paladin' thing was spur of the moment on Laura's part, but will be more fully realized before Hong Kong. Remember, she's been looking for a way to reassure people (and herself) about her power. The 'paladin' comment is part of that, and she can manage to be precisely what she claimed – a defender of the weak and champion of justice. A paladin in the historical/chivalrous sense, not the D&D sense. 2) The problem with upgrading the Trio's devices is how they are linked to them. Any modifications must be done very carefully, lest a modification cause a negative reaction in the wielder. Most of the Trio's improved safety will come from training, not modifications. Also, you have seen Laura in a sort of Struggle Bind – the Circles' Gaia's Anchor works off the same principles, dialed up to eleven. Struggle Bind is powerful, but not unbreakable. 3) Cid-chan's primary ability (and all she's really interested in) is healing, so that's where her focus lies. You'll never see her throwing buster spells around, for instance. This chapter and the next two are for completion of the second year students' devices, though Rhys and Saeryn will be covered later (sometime after Hong Kong, not sure when, yet). Mariachi isn't going to be fighting while singing, but his powers will focus on music and sound. 4) Szash was mean, but she came across more vicious than she meant... mostly. Details on what she offered and why will be clarified in the next few chapters (a little of that happened above, too). As for Fate's opinion on Natalia's link to Precia, it's one of those things that 'has yet to come up'. Fate would probably let it slide, though – she's not one to be confrontational on personal issues, and Lindy's her mother now. 5) The first years were included partly for padding (to remind everyone that Hayate's running a full school, not just a special one-off class). They do have a part to play, however, and if you check the Side Stories you'll see the latest is on a first year. Just due to the nature of the plot, though, they will play a distinctly secondary and less-developed role. 6) Kriegsen diverting the Bureau is based on logic (from his point of view) – if the Bureau gets directly involved, the Al Hantheans can't do his dirty work and Takashi slips away again. His plans are still in play, but he plots more than he acts. 7) Suzuka and Arisa never picked up magic, so I don't have any plans to involve them (except maybe after it's all over. Frankly, given their lack of magic, involving them in the Second Terran Mage War would be criminal:). Lindy does have a part to play, but she will be support, as she was in the first Nanoha series. 8) Hayate is very much suited for one-on-one combat, but that was not what she was doing in Cairo. She single-handedly maintained a Bureau containment barrier, coordinated a wide-area battle, stopped Esar cold, and then kept him from dying of his wounds. But she does need a better idea of what she can do – the problem is Sara was almost obsessive about collecting and developing spells. If you've read the Side Story Oops, you have a fair description of what her spell library was like. Hayate could do nothing but study that library every day, all day, and even this long after inheriting the Sword of Light, she would still be studying. She isn't passive enough to do that, she needs to do things, to help people. 9) I have a plan for a duel between one of the newcomers and one of Hayate's students, but you'll have to wait and see for that. Whew, that was a _long _review! Hope you keep enjoying this!


	24. 23 Molon Labe

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-23 – Molon Labe-

Yosho looked up as Journeyman Turo entered his office. Raising an eyebrow at the young man's hesitancy, Yosho activated the privacy shields, and waved him over.

Turo stopped in front of Yosho's desk, then held out a folded piece of paper. "We received a reply, Lord Protector. Apparently positive, if it was translated properly."

Yosho unfolded the paper, and found a single character: _what price?_ He smiled slightly, and leaned back in his chair. "Interesting," he mused, turning it over, "most interesting. A potential traitor in the enemy's ranks, one beholden to us instead of to themselves, which should make them more reliable than Kriegsen. Yet such rank and position, how can we trust her not to be a double-agent, a plant?"

"We could set her a task, Lord Protector," Turo offered, "something a double agent would not do. She would have to be even more ruthless and cold-hearted than we expect the rebels to be, for some things we might demand of her."

"True," Yosho nodded, "but one test would not suffice. Too easy to fake one test with her handlers' support. So, multiple tests, one immediate test to earn our assistance, and one or two subsequent tests to keep it. Send a reply, 'the strongest', along with the rendezvous coordinates. Let's see how she interprets that."

"Yes, Lord Protector."

"If she follows through," Yosho said, "we'll extract her during the confusion around Szash's little expedition to this... Hong Kong." He grimaced slightly, "What strange names they have created in our absence. It stutters so, 'Hong Kong'." He waved shook his head, dismissing the irrelevant musing, "Regardless, we will extract her then. Make sure she is prepared, and that our own team is in place. Once she is here, we will second her to Szash for 'field intelligence'. Szash will put her right out on the front lines to try and get rid of her, and if she performs well there, we will be able to trust her information. If she doesn't, Szash will pay the price for not watching her more closely. Make it so, Journeyman. Thank you."

Turo left, and Yosho spent a few moment contemplating his upcoming intelligence coup. _Potential coup,_ he reminded himself, _her answer was too swift, too simple. These rebels have a long history of deep maneuvers. I think, even after Szash tests her, I will have to be very, very cautious of her. We'll see how she interprets the price, though. If her response is extreme enough, I may have a lifetime hold on her._

00000

Teri Maunders liked to think of herself as a master soldier. She had trained hard for many years in the demanding art of infantry warfare, and she was good at it. She had trained almost as hard in magic, and was passably good at that, but that was a family tradition. Her rank of Sergeant was entirely self-earned, and she was proud of that. Put a rifle in her hands, a platoon at her back, and she would take on anything with confidence.

She was also a firm believer in military nepotism. Not so much the family dynasties that cropped up every so often, as the habit of officers who could chose subordinates, picking those they already knew. It may give an 'unfair advantage', but it also created teams that functioned smoothly and efficiently.

She just wished Lieutenant Colonel Yost had picked her to back him up in his first battalion command. Instead, he was running an admin command, liaising with the Japanese Self Defense Forces, and she was stuck working a desk. Promotion to First Sergeant came along either way, but sitting in an office in Tokyo, she was a long, long way from any troops, and the nearest 'rifle' was a submachinegun at the guard-post on the first floor, half a building below her. It was enough to ruin her day, on those occasions when she gave it any thought.

Despite her distaste for the position, Maunders could see the utility of it. The JSDF was small, compared to the US Army, but just as professional and much more polite. Most of the liaison office's responsibilities were in the area of intelligence sharing, information on North Korea, China, and whatever else looked worrisome in East Asia. It was mildly interesting, seeing the information that informed decisions made in Tokyo and Washington that were sometimes so inexplicable. She would have given all of that up along with her left arm, to have some troops to keep in shape, but she could see the purpose. She just wished it was a field position.

It being a Monday, she was contemplating her distaste for her current duties as the day wound down. The latest twist was wondering if Hughes could be convinced to transfer her to the Black Dogs, or a team like them. She would almost be willing to take a voluntary discharge to escape being stuck behind a desk. Such thoughts were interrupted when Saeko gasped. Figuring it was something the other woman had read, Maunders turned towards her, until one of her fellow Americans commented in English, "Damn, I guess they make hot Amazons here, too."

That got her entire attention, and she shot the man a glare. "Don't be a bigger ass than normal, Rogers."

He grimaced, then gestured, "Tell me I'm wrong about that woman."

The office was a long, narrow room, stretching most of the length of the building from the elevators at one end to the officers' offices at the other. Looking towards the entrance, Maunders saw the long purple hair, and groaned in dread. "Oh, god dammit, what do those lunatics want now?"

"Maunders?"

She shook her head, pushing away from her desk, "I know that 'Amazon', and for once, Rogers, you're right. She's an Amazon. But she's not Japanese." Walking out into the aisle, she waved Signum over, gesturing for the Private moving to intercept to stand down. He looked doubtful, right up until Signum stopped by Maunders' desk.

"Hello, Journeywoman," Signum greeted her in English, "Is your Lieutenant Colonel available? I need to speak with him."

"He's in his office, I can check," Maunders replied. "What did you need to speak with him about?"

Signum actually cracked a smile, "Well, I'm stealing his favorite Sergeant. It's only polite to inform him of why."

Maunders choked on that one, then glared, "Explain."

Signum looked more amused, but answered, "We require a liaison with the Circles, during this crisis. Tai-yu cannot do it, as your people would kill her on sight. That leaves two people we trust not to sabotage the proceedings, and Hughes is rather busy where he is."

Maunders did not like the sound of that. Bad enough she was in an admin post, getting seconded to play messenger for heretics did not sound like a step up. "What about Marterosian? He should be more than reliable, given that you have his daughters."

Signum's humor vanished. "We do not take children hostage. Your people attempted that last year, not us. Besides, Shiraz is no soldier, you are. Also, Hughes has already agreed, and is making arrangements with your military. It appears your president is less than pleased with Al Hanthis' seizure of the Suez. You can refuse, Maunders, in which case we will do without, but having you in this role will greatly ease our efforts. We have a common enemy, there is no reason not to cooperate."

Maunders could not really object to that, she had too much experience working with people she did not like and doing it well. "I'm not using a device," she growled. "I may have to work with you heretics, but I'm not turning in to one."

Signum's amusement returned, somewhat weaker. "That would defeat the purpose, Journeywoman."

"Maunders," she countered. "Journeywoman's too much of a tongue-twister. Just call me Maunders."

"Understood. Your lieutenant colonel?"

"He's not mine," Maunders grumbled, sitting down and reaching for the phone, "I answer to him, not the other way around."

"Much the same way I answer to Mistress Hayate, yes? We both take care of our superiors in spite of themselves, Maunders. It is what we do."

00000

Updating the device construction in the aftermath of Allina's and Niranjana's device activation tests added a day to the rest of the class's efforts. In the end, it was almost a full week before they finished, and despite Yussef's attempts to hurry his boys along, they all wound up finishing over the course of two days, right at the same time the last of the girls were finishing up.

That, naturally, started a running argument the first night after some of his boys finished. He wanted the boys to activate their devices as a group, and spent the better part of the afternoon and dinner arguing with Laura about letting the girls who had finished go first. Laura objected, on the grounds that Marcel finished before any of the remaining girls, and therefore he had to 'face the music' first and alone.

Predictably, it was Noriko who settled it. "Since none of the boys are willing to go first, we will wait until all of them have finished. If the girls finish before the boys, the girls will activate their devices first. If the boys all finish before all the girls, then the boys will go first. If everyone finishes at about the same time, we will have Chen-chi flip a coin for us."

"You mean decide for us," Laura grumbled. "Girl cheats worse than I do."

"But for some reason everyone trusts her," Noriko countered. "So, with Hayate-sensei's permission, we'll see who finishes first, the boys or girls. So do let the matter lie, and let me enjoy at least some of my dinner?"

Yussef had no problems with the arrangement, but it took a hard look from Noriko to get Laura to drop the subject. He was not even that worried about getting his boys to finish first – first or second, all he was concerned about was that they all activated their devices in the same class, or at least in successive classes.

He had been working with them long enough, working on making them a team long enough, that he was worried about some sort of rivalries developing over who woke their device first. There had already been some competition to see who could get the most construction done, who made the fewest mistakes, and the like. It was minor competition at this point, friends pushing each other to do better, but Yussef was too well aware of how important finishing their devices was, to each of them. Having them activate as a group would ease those tensions, turn competition into shared success.

When Luke and Toushiro finally finished their devices the next day, he breathed a sigh of relief. When he stepped into the workroom the girls were using, however, it was to watch Megan, the last of the girls to finish, mount her device in a testing rig. Glancing at Noriko, he asked, "You're all finished?"

"Just now," Noriko said. "You?"

Grimacing, he admitted, "Just now."

Noriko had the good graces not to laugh, but the smile was more than enough. "I would say, if you had time to come over here after that, you boys finished just before us. Any objection to letting the boys go first, ladies?"

There was some grumbling from Allison and Juliet, but none of the girls really felt like going against Noriko. "Look at it this way," Natalia offered, "we let the boys go first, so if there are any dangerous interactions between that many waking devices, they suffer the consequences." She actually grinned at Yussef, which was a distinctly creepy experience, "that's what boys are for, after all, to do the dangerous stuff, ne?"

So six days after Allina and Niranjana activated their devices, and after an almost continuous run of bad sci-fi movies insisted upon by Allina, Yussef's Myrmidons finally had their day. Yussef was unsurprised to find himself rather more nervous than his friends. They were all sublimely confident that everything would work fine, that there would be no problems or surprises. Yussef knew just how shaky the foundation on which their confidence rested was built. Zafira, Signum, and Hayate all tried to reassure him, Vita just laughed at him and told him not to worry, but he could not shake his nerves.

He did a fairly good job concealing it from his boys, though. The only one that noticed was Marcel, who just looked amused and shook his head when Yussef gathered them all together the night before the activations. The last minute conference – he refused to call it a 'harangue', whatever Toushiro said – was probably unnecessary, but it did salve his nerves enough for him to sleep, and there was never anything wrong with reviewing plans to minimize mistakes.

When Lotte's class came around, Yussef had to work very hard not to march out to the line of devices with his boys. Parking himself next to Hayate took an act of will. Not saying anything required even more effort. Apparently the effort was enough for him that Hayate noticed.

_'I know you're worried, Yussef, but you need to learn to let it go,'_ she told him. _'You have chosen to lead soldiers, which will mean sending them off on their own. It is not as bad with my Knights, but even I had to learn this lesson. You plan as best you can, you train hard, and you trust in your soldiers to live up to their training.'_

It had taken him weeks, but Yussef had finally gotten the trick of telepathy. He still had trouble with range, and could not reach through the workroom shields, but speaking privately with Hayate standing right next to him was easy enough. _'I am worried about something going wrong today, something happening to them, but that's not really what's bothering me right now, Hayate-sensei,'_ He replied, almost laughing at the thought. _'To be honest, I'm more worried about their success.'_ She gave him a questioning look, so he explained, _'We have never failed, sensei, never been defeated. Oh, sure, they know they can't take me, they know that even with a device Laura can pound the snot out of them. But that's different. We aren't enemies, not even opponents. Success breeds complacency, arrogance. I'm starting to see that in the boys, a sublime confidence against an enemy we know very little about. It worries me.'_

Hayate sounded shocked when she asked, _'You want them to fail to activate their devices?'_

_'No, but... I would not be too broken up if they did.'_ He grimaced, trying for the umpteenth time to figure out a way to explain without sounding defeatist. _'No group, no force, no nation, no person, has ever truly been undefeated. Even Mohammed was driven out of Mecca, to seek sanctuary in Jiddah. Even Saladin lost battles. We haven't yet, and I don't know how we'll handle it. There's nothing drastic, yet, but the guys have an... attitude, like we're invincible. I don't know how to teach them we're not, short of doing serious damage. Even sparring with them, or in my class, there's always thoughts of Laura hovering in the background, of you and the other teachers, a sense of, "well, sure, we lost here, but sensei could handle it easy." So, yeah, I'm worried that this will be too easy, and the only time they'll learn the lesson is when one of them dies.'_

Hayate gave him a surprised look, that turned thoughtful after a few seconds. _'That is... very mature of you, Yussef. Most people never think to worry about too much success.'_

Yussef did chuckle at that, _'Neither did I, until Faisal gave me a book on Alexander the Great, towards the end of summer. The writer pointed out repeatedly that Alexander never lost, and how that colored his thinking, how he never planned for what would happen after his death. There was more to it, but... it's an easy mistake to make, one I need to avoid.'_

_'It is a difficult problem. I doubt you will be free this afternoon, but perhaps you, Signum, and I could get together tomorrow afternoon and discuss it?'_

_'I'm supposed to work with Toushiro and Ichigo on sensing past barriers,'_ Yussef replied, _'but they'll agree to reschedule, probably use the time to practice with their devices.'_

_'Speaking of which, Lotte is done lecturing,'_ Hayate told him. _'Looks like she chose to have them go one at a time again.'_

The boys' devices had been set in a line, one side of the workroom to the other, and with no conversation, they started on the right and began working their way down. Luke stepped up to his first, resting a hand on the core. He bowed his head and spoke softly, obviously trying to keep his activation phrase secret, but Lotte was not about to allow that, and after a second, Luke's voice was echoing off the walls like it came from a loud-speaker. "Dreams awake and nightmares ride, lessons learned and forgotten again, time to wake and Dream once more. Wake to my hand, Catalpa."

Yussef had not really been paying attention to the prior device activations, not as much as he was now, searching for any and every inconsistency. The Catalpa's change was rather faster than Yussef remembered his own being. He could easily recall the drawn-out process of Zulfiquar bonding to his linker core, forming itself into the sword. Catalpa's activation took only a second, a flash of light spreading from the processor core to engulf the entire device, then flowing down into a short double-edged sword similar in lines to Signum's Levantine.

"That was fast," Yussef muttered, wondering if this was the problem he had half-anticipated.

Hayate chuckled at him, "No, it wasn't. It seems longer in the moment, but it only takes a brief second, if that."

"I should have expected a sword," Lotte complained, inspecting Luke's device without touching it. Its blade was a little shorter than Zulfiquar's, but a single double-edged blade instead of twin single-edged blades. There was a solid square as a cross-guard, with an armored disc set in it, and Yussef saw a cartridge ejection port in one end of the square, but no loading port. Lotte brought that one up, "You have the practice cartridge?"

Luke nodded, pulling it out of a pocket. He said nothing, but a port in the pommel snapped open, and he loaded the cartridge there. "Tube magazine," Luke explained, "four cartridges."

"Cartridge loaded," Catalpa stated, in a _far _worse accent than Luke ever demonstrated, "warning, calibration error."

"Yeah, Cat, I know that," Luke muttered, then blinked and blushed slightly as everyone else laughed.

"Cute, Luke," Lotte said, "now, armor please."

Luke nodded, "Catalpa, Fortress."

"Aye, sir," the sword flashed slightly, and a second later Luke was wearing a remarkably familiar suit of armor. The flowing pants and shirt were white, the boots black, just like Yussef's, but the leather-like body armor and bracers were a sort of rust-red, instead of Yussef's grey. Instead of Yussef's family crest on his chest, Luke's armor had the Australian flag etched just over his heart. The Myrmidon pin was now set into the armor's left shoulder.

Yussef could not help feeling honored by that, right up until everyone turned to stare at him with a variety of expressions, from amusement to questions. He just shrugged, "What can I say, Luke knows style when he sees it."

That got a few chuckles, as Luke admitted, "Well, actually, I didn't give it much thought. It's just... this is what I think of when a barrier jacket comes up. No offense, senseis, but..." he trailed off and shrugged.

"Hey, so long as you're comfortable," Lotte told him, then jabbed him hard in one shoulder. It was enough to rock him back on his heels, but not, quite, enough to push him back. "Hmm, not bad," Lotte allowed, "not as tough as Yu-chan's, but you're better at shields than he is. Good. Now, stand there and try not to blow up." She spun in place, a huge smirk on her face, and in a sing-song voiced aid, "Oh, Shiro-chan, it's your turn."

Toushiro grimaced at the nickname, but stepped up to his device. Unlike Luke, he made no attempt to keep his activation phrase a secret. "In defense of my friends, in opposition of our enemies, in honor of my ancestors. Daikyu."

Yussef was better prepared for the speed of the reaction this time, and felt a little shame as he compared it to Allina's and Niranjana's activations the week before. He should have been paying more attention to the girls, learning from their activations. Instead he had treated that class like a ceremonial duty, his mind elsewhere. A mistake he would have to be careful not to repeat.

When the light cleared, Toushiro was holding an asymmetrical longbow in deep black, with an almost invisibly narrow bar in place of the string. Above the hand-grip was a small extension, incorporating a small sight, while below it was a larger armored cylinder with two short blocks to either side. Toushiro did not wait for instructions from Lotte to load his test-cartridge, slotting it into an opening on the rear of the right-hand block, receiving the same error message.

Lotte looked the device over for a moment, then flicked an ear, "A bow? Does it work?"

Toushiro looked a little confused for a moment, then shrugged and settled into a firing position. His form looked odd to Yussef, arms above his head, then draw them down, straightening his left arm and bending his right elbow... or at least, trying to. He gave a couple attempts, frowning more fiercely, "The string isn't drawing at all, but... Daikyu, Arrow."

In a voice that sounded remarkably like Noriko's bodyguard Hidan, Daikyu answered, "Hai, Tono," and the string began to glow slightly. The next time Toushiro drew the bow, the entire motion was smooth the 'string' glowing purplish, and an arrow of energy forming between his hands. He looked to Lotte, who nodded, and released the bolt down-range. The buster spell was fast, but it tracked oddly, not a straight line but a slightly ballistic arc, before impacting the workroom's shields. It was far enough away that Yussef could not tell if it the floor or the far wall.

"That's going to be tricky to block," Yussef commented, "that arc's going to throw someone expecting a straight-shot."

"True," Hayate agreed, "but only the first time or two. A guided spell will still be better in most respects."

Yussef nodded, "But any surprise you can give an opponent is useful."

"All right, Shiro-chan," Lotte said, circling him slowly, "Let's see you're armor.

"You're going to be disappointed, Lotte-sensei," Toushiro warned her. "Daikyu, Barrier Jacket."

Yussef held out a hope for a few seconds, as his friend flashed purple a moment, but it was a scant and vain hope. Toushiro's armor was black, and the symbol on his chest was kanji characters for Soldier of Heaven. Other than that, it precisely matched Luke's, which precisely matched Yussef's. Yussef released his held breath in a heavy sigh, reaching up to hold his face in his hand. "They're trying to embarrass me to death."

"They're honoring their leader, Yussef," Hayate protested.

"Jackboots."

She blinked at him, not catching the reference, "I'm sorry?"

"One of Laura's quips about the Myrmidons," Yussef explained, "Jackboots, a reference to the Nazis, specifically, but also to militarists in general. The worst part is, I can't even complain to them. The Barrier Jackets are theirs to shape, their choice. Maybe I can change mine."

Hayate grimaced, "You are in no danger of becoming that sort of monster, Yussef. Besides, a uniform will help identify you, to each other and to our allies."

"Let them have their pride," Signum added. "A proud soldier is an honest one, a reliable one. Pride will keep them from descending to barbaric actions, and will keep them from mindlessly fleeing an enemy."

Yussef could hardly argue with that, but having his boys so obviously modeling themselves on him was still embarrassing, so he settled for nodding ruefully. He still made a mental note to look into changing his own barrier jacket to something a little more distinctive. He might not actually do it, but wanted the option.

Lotte was finished prodding at Toushiro's armor by this point, and moved on to Noah.

Noah remained the smallest-looking of the second-year boys, wiry and starved-looking for his height, small enough he should have been thoroughly intimidated. But he matched Lotte's smirk with one of his own, and by the time she turned to him, he was leaning non-nonchalantly on an elbow on his device. "Ready, sensei?"

"What do you think, Noah-kun?"

He chuckled, his grin grew a little wider, and he said not a word as the processor core flashed once, and a blue light blinded everyone for a moment. When it cleared, Noah was upright, holding a long pole-arm. The haft was just shy of two meters, with a fifty centimeter blade half fixed to the pole, half extended beyond the end. Opposite the blade was a boxy arrangement, including a trio of vent cylinders, around a light blue gem. "Corregidor," he said after a moment, flipping the device to rest flat in his hands.

Lotte was outright glaring at him, "When did you really activate it? You were supposed to wait for class!"

"I did," Noah said, grinning back at her, "but no one said we had to _speak _the pass-phrase. The processor cores are capable of short-range telepathy pre-activation, they have to be in order to impress from the wielder. So I 'pathed the phrase, and Corregidor accepted it. Voila, device activated. Oh, yes, Corregidor, Blast Armor."

At least this time no one stared at Yussef. Noah's armor followed the pattern Luke and Toushiro set. The symbol over his heart was a simple cross in front of crossed sword and staff, and he, too, had his Myrmidon pin on his left shoulder. Aside from the blue color of the armor, the only difference Yussef could spot was that it _looked_ harder than Toushiro's or Luke's.

"Ugh, you boys are so boring!" Lotte played up her exasperation, but took to poking and prodding at Noah's armor just like she had the others. After two pokes, though, she was truly frowning, and jabbing at Noah remarkably harder than she had the others. Then she hauled off and punched him right in the chest.

To Yussef's surprise, Noah moved precisely one step, staggering back a little. He did not even rock from the impact, just took that one step back and started looking worried. "Um, Sensei? Something wrong?"

"Wrong?" Lotte's frown became a grimace, "That's not wrong, it's ridiculous! A barrier jacket is supposed to be a final defense, strong but flexible and maneuverable, it's one of the most efficient defenses ever devised, in terms of energy-use and attention needed. But this thing!" She gestured theatrically at Noah, "this thing's almost as tough as a workroom shield! I'm getting nothing through it, nothing at all!" Then her smirk returned, "Guess playing punching bag for Allison was worth it, huh? We're going to have to test this, Noah-kun, see just how much it slows you down, and just how tough it really is. Allison, day after tomorrow the three of us'll set some time aside, right?"

Yussef smiled at the ribbing that followed that comment, but was just as happy. If Noah's barrier jacket was that strong, his shields should be even stronger, which was perfectly fine. Noah had repeatedly demonstrated that he was more than capable of protecting his teammates and using those shields in surprisingly creative ways. He was a becoming a little over-specialized, in Yussef's opinion, but that was not necessarily a bad thing. "Go easy on him, Allison," Yussef asked loudly, "he's got to work on showing the rest of us how to do it."

"I've never not gone easy on him," Allison said, "but I'm not about to baby the beanpole."

"Be nice, Ally," Noah countered, "or I'll tell 'em about that story about your little brother."

Allison stiffened slightly, glaring, "I told you no such story."

"Children," Lotte interrupted, jabbing Noah's armor again, "I'm allowed to pick on you, you aren't allowed to pick on each other. Okay, Noah, you're good for now. So next would be Ichigo, the last of today's keniggets."

Ichigo opened his mouth to reply, then patently thought better of it and just shook his head. Settling his hand on his device's processor core, his pass phrase was simple. "To my friends, to my father and family, to the traditions which make us what we are, Semper Fidelis. Prove yourself worthy of that standard, Masamune."

When the red glow faded, Ichigo had a long-bladed sword in his hand. It was heavier than any katana blade, easily eight centimeters wide at the base, but followed the same gentle single-edged curve. There was no armored disc, though the shape of the tsuba was suggestive of it. A cylindrical magazine was mounted on the pommel.

Without waiting for Lotte's order, Ichigo loaded his test cartridge, to the same error as Luke and Toushiro, then ordered, "Masamune, Valor Ward." The armored portion of Ichigo's barrier jacket was a deeper red than Luke's, and had the US Marines' globe and anchor on his left chest, Ichigo's Myrmidon pin on his right shoulder.

Lotte prowled around him twice, arms crossed. She first tested his armor as she was finishing her second circuit, a surprise jab into his shoulder, then continued around, poking and prodding with abandon. "Hmm, you, Ichigo, are in dire need of Noah's help. This is barely up to standard."

"Yeah, but I bet I'm faster than he is," Ichigo countered. "I know I'm quicker at getting shields up and spells off. Sure his are tougher, but that won't matter if he gets hit before his shields go up."

"Really? How does your fearless leader feel about that?"

"Ichigo does better in an assault role," Yussef answered, "so, in general, I would prefer that he be faster, rather than tougher. We'll see if he's right today, and especially on Sunday."

Ichigo grimaced at the implied workout, but nodded. "Don't worry about it, Yussef, I'll handle whatever you throw at me."

"Yeah, yeah, loyal to the last and all that," Lotte interrupted, "you need to toughen up that barrier jacket. I'm not training targets. Work on that while I handle the rest of your fellow jarheads."

"I am not a jarhead," Marcel objected primly. "I am a highly trained mage and Myrmidon." Then he broke the image by grinning at Lotte.

"You're something all right," Lotte agreed. "You ready?"

"Nope."

Lotte checked at that, then huffed, "Brat. Too bad, today's the day. Go on, it won't bite... but I might, if you keep me waiting for the show."

"Ever with honor, in support of my allies and goals, stand at my side, Arondight." Marcel's device formed itself into a sword, almost a cross between Levantine and the Hellblade. It was a double-edged sword, with a blade almost as long as he was tall and a massive two-handed grip. The blade was set into a green gem, which was the center of a sharply angled S-shaped cross-guard that, on one side, reached halfway down the grip. The sheer scale of it would have been laughable, if not for the fact that Marcel was staring at it in utter shock.

"Wow," Lotte muttered, "you competing with Takashi?"

"Um, not by intent," Marcel answered, "but... apparently I am."

"Does it feel heavy? Unwieldy?" Lotte actually hefted the blade, the first time she touched one of their devices. "It should form itself to your personality, and be comfortable to hold."

"It feels fine," Marcel said, "it's just... nothing I expected. I was aiming for a sword, sure, but... this is a bit big."

"So long as it isn't unwieldy, you should give it a chance," Lotte said. "Reformatting an activated device is somewhat difficult. Not really hard, just finicky and delicate. So, give it a chance, and if it proves a bother, we can fix it later. For now, barrier jacket."

"Hai, sensei," Marcel responded, but sounded doubtful, "Arondight, Roland." Marcel's armor was a deep green, almost black, with a fleur-de-lis backed by two swords, one single-blade, one twin-blade picked out in white. He was also the first to change something else, swapping out the white shirt for gray and the pants for black to match the boots.

"Not bad," Lotte allowed, performing her usual tests on the barrier jacket, "not as happy as the rainbow crew behind me, but not bad."

Marcel twitched and almost glared at her for a moment, then shook his head and forced a grin, "Don't want to make the boss too nervous. He might fire one of us."

Lotte chuckled at that, "Maybe one of the boys, but he can't very well fire his brain, now can he? Not bad, Marcel. Which leaves one last student for today," she turned slowly, "Well, Mariachi-kun? Is the last of the Myrmidons ready to face the music?"

"I'm always ready for music," Mariachi replied, "here, I'll prove it." Mariachi did not move to touch his device, merely closed his eyes, following in Toushiro's footsteps. His activation was also somewhat longer than the others. The processor core began to glow first, then the light spread to the components of the device. As it became too bright to see through, Yussef could hear something, sounds, which rapidly rose into the audible range. It may have been Mariachi's activation phrase, but it was not his voice – rather, it sounded like an entire chorus, singing in German, backed up by an orchestra.

"_Seid umschlungen, Millionen!_

_Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt!_

_Brüder, über'm Sternenzelt_

_Muss ein lieber Vater wohnen._

_Seid umschlungen,_

_Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt!_

_Freude, schöner Götterfunken_

_Tochter aus Elysium,_

_Freude, schöner Götterfunken!"_

By the time the last voice faded away, Mariachi's device was fully awake, resting across his shoulders and chest. It looked almost like an American football harness, only sleeker and more compact, and a surprisingly bright green. There was a case on the back, in the center of which was a large deep green gem-stone.

"Left his hands free," Yussef noted with a smirk. "I'd bet against Chen-chi, it's so he can keep a guitar handy."

"I would have though the device would be a guitar," Hayate replied.

Yussef shook his head, "No, not Mariachi. Magic and Music are separate to him. They go together okay, but it's like flying and fighting are for Laura – complimentary, but fun separately as well."

"Interesting choice, Mariachi," Lotte allowed, reaching out to test the device's fit by almost jerking Mariachi off his feet. "This thing have a name?"

"El Corazon," Mariachi answered, "as deep as the connection is supposed to be, it seemed appropriate."

"Cute," Lotte said. "Barrier jacket?"

"Dampener," Mariachi replied. The gem on his back flashed, and a series of chords sounded, descending and softening into silence. Much like Laura's Gaussian Field, Dampener added plates to the existing armor, fully enclosing Mariachi's chest, and wrapping his arms and legs in more solid sections of armor, joined by a flexible body suit with integral pads over knees, elbows and gut.

That got everyone staring at Yussef again, but he just smiled and sighed loudly, "_Thank _you, Mariachi. Much better than I expected."

Mariachi actually looked slightly embarrassed at not matching the other guys, and shrugged. "Sorry guys but... I know you're all focused on the Circles and Al Hanthis, but it won't last forever, and the music..."

"Don't worry about it," Marcel smiled at him, "at least you aren't stuck with a monstrous pig-sticker. To each their own."

"I'm still a Myrmidon," Mariachi protested.

"No one's saying you aren't," Yussef reassured him. "Quite the opposite. Every military has different branches, Mariachi, different roles for people to fill. Believe me, I'm just as glad to have some variety in the group, you were all starting to make me nervous. Clones of me would be better than clones of the ditz, but that's not saying much."

"Just imagine how much fun a clone of both of you would be," Lotte countered. "Now, since you boys have finished stage one and your armor is up," she gestured towards the far end of the workroom, and structures began rising out of the floor, "I've prepared a little group test. It's similar in many ways to the obstacle course that Signum built, and the courses Yussef's been putting you through. Here, though, you're going to find out just how much different a device makes."

The course that formed appeared simple. It was a series of rings floating in the air, set into a long loop that started by Luke, went almost to the far wall, then looped back and forth to create an 'M' shape that ended by Mariachi. The height of each ring varied, just a little, creating a roller-coaster effect, and surrounding the course were a number of small targets in red, green and yellow.

As a zeroed timer appeared in the center of the room, Lotte explained, "The objective, obviously, is to complete the course in the minimum possible time and hit as many targets as possible. The trick is two-fold. Each time you slip off course, out of line with the rings, you are docked ten seconds. Each of the red targets requires a buster spell utilizing at least twice as much power as you have used in class previously. Each of the green targets requires a buster spell utilizing less power than you have used in class previously. Each of the yellow targets requires either a binding spell or a containment shield, your choice.

"This is not going to be easy, boys. Nee-chan and I can complete this course in under a minute, every target hit. We expect you to do it in two. You can pick and choose when and how to hit the targets, shots from across the room will count just as much as those from point-blank range. But you have to follow the course, stay in the path, and get it done quick. This is not so much to push you, as to show you the differences your individual devices create. Flight is going to be much easier, but you are going to have to overcome old reflexes. Same with the busters spells, bindings, and shields.

"First time through is easy, all you have to worry about is the course and the targets. Second time the same, but the third time…" She smirked wide enough to show her fangs, "the third time the targets will be shooting back! Now, since he's conveniently placed right next to the start, let's have Luke go first."

"Zafira-sensei's going to be sorry he missed this," Yussef commented as Luke took the air. The Australian repeated Yussef's first-flight mistake and almost rammed the ceiling, but corrected much more rapidly.

"He'll probably watch the recordings tonight," Hayate replied, "and want to discuss them with you tomorrow."

"Good. I wonder if Lotte-sensei would be willing to let me snitch this program. Or at least the targets, I hadn't thought of differentiating the power level separately like that." Watching his boys take their turns, Yussef was mostly pleased, despite his worries. Their barrier jackets made him uncomfortable, to some extent, and he could see where they were going to need work to adapt to their new devices. But he had to be pleased, generally speaking. They were fully equipped now, and he began thinking of how best to train, now that their major limitation had been removed.

00000

"Excuse me, Colonel? Admiral Dahvid from the Joint Chiefs' office is on the phone, requesting some time."

Hughes looked up from packing and frowned. Lieutenant Addler was getting used to fielding calls from surprisingly high up the chain of command, but looked visibly confused by this one. The current uniformed head of the United States military did not routinely call Army colonels, however politically connected. "Did he say what he wants?"

Addler nodded, "Not fully, sir, but he mentioned an incident involving A... Atlantis."

Hughes grimaced at that, then shooed Addler out the door. "I'll take it here, thank you." A second later, the line went live, "Good morning, Admiral, this is Colonel Hughes. How can I help you, sir?"

The Admiral sounded oddly serious for his first question. "All packed for your move cross-country, Colonel?"

"Halfway there, sir. I'm having to pack up a lot more than is usual, but should be done on time today, barring any emergencies."

"Leave the packing to your aide," the Admiral ordered, "I need you in DC now."

That was a surprise, most of the top brass had been ambivalent, at best, about having him closer to DC. They were – justifiably – worried about his loyalty to the Army and Armed Forces. "Sir?"

"An old six-eighty-eight boat, USS _San Jose_ was on patrol in the western Indian Ocean until about eight hours ago. We received a priority message that the boat had come under attack from biologicals, and then ten minutes later the distress beacon. The _Reagan_ and her battle-group were on patrol in the Gulf, and are now moving south for SAR, but we have reason to believe, based on other sources, that Atlantis' forces may have been involved. The Navy needs tactical advice, and the President needs any advice he can get. There's an Air Force jet waiting for you at the airport. Pack a day bag and have your aide finish the packing."

"Biologicals, sir? We – the Circles, that is – had reports of a force of Seed of Leviathan leaving Atlantis yesterday, that's probably what attacked the _San Jose_."

"We figured, but we still need advice on how to fight the damn things, and how to conduct SAR in the area without loosing more ships. Get to that plane, Colonel."

"Yes, sir." Different service or not, only flag officers argued with flag officers. Hanging up after the Admiral, Hughes shouted, "Addler!" His door opened, but before Addler could speak, Hughes carried on, "Finish packing my gear here, Addler, I've been ordered to DC soonest. If you have any questions, box it up, mark it 'classified', and I'll sort it out on the other end."

"Yes sir."

"Also, do me a favor and call motor pool, I need transport to the Air National Guard base immediately."

"Yes, sir."

Addler disappeared, and Hughes picked up the phone, dialing from memory. While it rang, he began pulling together the personal effects he would need – phone, planner, PDA, the usual. When it picked up, he said, "Sam? Gareth."

"Hughes. What can I do for you?"

Hughes winced at Sam's tone, reminded again of how distant his friend had grown since Hayate's counter-attack. Sam supported him, but was not very comfortable about it. "I need a favor. My move to DC has been stepped up, and I won't have time to pack up all the Circle materials I need to bring with me. Can you finish it up and ship it to me? The planned channels will work, I just don't have time to do it myself."

"I can handle that," Sam answered, "Jennifer will help. How soon do you need to be there, will you have time to give us some specific directions?"

"Afraid not. Seed apparently attacked a Navy sub in the Indian Ocean. The Joint Chiefs want me in DC to hold their hands and reassure them, and I can't really refuse. As soon as I hang up with you, I'm catching a car to the airport."

"Damn, they really are scared."

"Sub was attacked and apparently sunk," Hughes commented. "The Navy takes that sort of thing a little personally."

"Christ," Sam sounded horrified. "I'm sorry, Hughes. We'll get everything packed up and shipped soonest. Will you need any of us out there?"

Having his circle with him would have made Hughes far happier, but he was not willing to disrupt all their lives when it was not really necessary. "Don't know yet, but I appreciate the offer. I'll let you know."

Ten minutes later he was in the back of a staff car, pulling out his cellphone. Maunders' number was still programmed, she was too useful to completely let go. He almost regretted calling her when she answered, though.

She picked up the phone and, before he could say anything, said, "Hello, Colonel Grand Master."

It was plainly obvious she was angry about something, and he remembered too late that he had meant to call her earlier and warn her. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he said, "Hello, Maunders. I take it Hayate's been by already?"

"Signum, actually. She said the most amazing things, sir."

"They need a liaison, Maunders, and you're the only one that I can trust that far. I meant to call you earlier, but I'm in the middle of moving myself. And we have bigger problems."

"Hong Kong."

Hughes twitched, "What?"

"Signum is convinced that Al Hanthis' next target is Hong Kong. Is she wrong?"

"Maybe not. A US submarine was sunk earlier today by Seed, in the Indian Ocean. I would appreciate it if you would let Hayate know, and arrange a time for me to talk to her directly."

"You could call her directly, sir, she prefers that."

"You prefer that, and I'd rather establish the precedent of going through you early."

Maunders sighed, "All right, sir, I'll pass it on. We going to do something this time?"

"Cairo was too fast," Hughes answered. "If they're waiting for Seed to swim all the way, we have time to get ready for Hong Kong. Time we'll use to turn that city into a meat-grinder, with or without Hayate."

00000

Author's Note: When the Persian Emperor demanded the Greeks (there were more than just Spartans) guarding the pass of Thermopylae surrender and give up their arms, their response was two words – Molon Labe. Roughly translated, it means 'come and take them'. The phrase is the motto of the modern day Greek First Army Corp, and seems a fitting attitude for Yussef's Myrmidons.

Author's Note the Second: I'm a little unhappy with this chapter, mostly for the repetitive nature of the activation scene. Six at once is too many, but at the same time I could not see any of the boys agreeing to go separately. Not so much 'I want to go first' as 'I don't want to leave them behind' or 'I don't want the others thinking I'm arrogant'. While the boys are as competitive as any other teen, they're not _that_ competitive. So all of them got to go at once, and the personalities of their devices will come through later. With regard to the variations between Al Hanthis and Atlantis used above, that is deliberate on my part – different people will refer to the city using different terms, depending primarily on how 'Terran' they are. Non-mages will usually use the mythological name, while Hayate's people generally use the city's real name, and the Circles will vary greatly. Also, for your edification, here are the origins of the boys' device names:

Catalpa – After the whaling ship _Catalpa. _Irish Phineans in America hired and crewed the ship to help them break out some comrades who had been condemned by the British to life-sentences in Australia, using whaling as a cover. Arguably the most famous 'break out' from Australia, certainly got themselves a fun song out of it. Sailed from New England to Australia, picked up two or three escaped prisoners, outran a steam-driven patrol boat, and returned to New England... without ever catching a single whale:). Luke's activation phrase is a reference to the Australian Aborigines' myths of the Dreamtime.

Daikyu – the asymmetrical Japanese long-bow.

Corregidor – An island in Manila Bay, pre-WWII it was a small fortress. When the Japanese invaded the Philippines in WWII, the Corregidor garrison was one of the last to surrender.

Masamune – a reference to the greatest sword-smith of Japanese history. Fits Ichigo's dual-nationality outlook better than the original idea for a device-name: Ma Deuce (for the M2 .50 machine gun developed for the US military prior to WWII, and still in use today).

Arondight – Sir Lancelot's sword in Arthurian myth.

El Corazon – Spanish for 'the heart'. The lyrics are the last chorus of the Ode to Joy, 4th movement of Beethoven's 9th symphony. The lyrics fall within the public domain, and are thus permitted under FFN's current rules.

00000

Tombadgerlock: Thank you for the compliment, and I don't think the end will be bad, but then, I'm a twisted bastard. You'll have to wait and see.

CrimsonDX: You should see the movie (or at least read the book, A.C. Clark is incredible), but yeah, HAL's thoroughly pervaded the popular consciousness. And yes, Allina's device does have movie-HAL's creepy monotone voice.

Shinjai: I have plans for Allina and Niranjana, even as soon as Hong Kong. Natalia will have part of her day in the next chapter, and all of them should get a chance to shine at Hong Kong. The future quotes will begin making a little more sense in a couple chapters, as the Dark Witch's identity will be revealed in a few chapters. The Emperor's identity is going to take longer to get to, though.

Baughn: Speed of hacking is mostly dependent on familiarity with the system, and Niranjana and Allina know one another's computers backwards and forwards. As far as hacking those two devices, devices are actually very easy to protect, as Hayate demonstrated. So are computers, so long as you're willing to completely disconnect them from any networks. Computers are almost useless if not networked, but devices remain fully-functional. It's things like Bureau ships, Terran networks, and any such networked technologies that are vulnerable. Thanks for the information on Subaru, as well. The Al Hanthis implants are nowhere near that extreme – details on those are planned for Hong Kong.

pfeil: I'm afraid last chapter is probably about as detailed as I'll ever get with the computer activity. There will be more scenes of similar content, but not much more in the way of details. I'm an MCSA myself, so I know enough to be dangerous (to my own systems more than anyone else's:), but despite 'Jana and Allina, I'm not really writing a hacking story. Maybe a Side Story of them getting into something they shouldn't... I do have some ideas for Nanoha and the kids, though I'm not sure how much I'll detail it.

Kell Shock: Glad you liked it, but there was some serious stuff last chapter, as well... somewhere. Unless you were laughing at some of the ironies I've been setting up? Glad you liked it, either way.

A006: Glad you liked the computer descriptions, but I didn't think there was that much detail – if you're studying C++ you know more about programming than I do. I know enough of the hacking from studying networks to know how it works. Allina and Niranjana will handle the electronic and cyber warfare, but those are going to function somewhat differently in a mage-battle than their conventional forms. I'm not familiar with Negima – not enough to catch your reference, at least – but the devices don't run on batteries, they run on people. The duo can hack 'traditional' networks, and the ability of their devices to operate independently and to multi-task, as well as their sheer computational speed, will make them frighteningly effective at it. But the Al Hantheans don't use traditional networks, they have their own versions, that even the Bureau won't be familiar with. Activating the Alpha's is not painful, Szash took no damage, it's just disgusting (imagine sticking your hand in the mouth of a panting dog, for example, and letting it lick your hand while you do. Ew.), and she is personally uncomfortable with using the Seed. Cidela's power is true healing, whereas I gather from elsewhere that Inoue's is manipulation of reality, but yes, Cid-chan is very powerful. Note, however, that she and Shamal _thought _they _might _be able to regenerate his arm – awesome of them just to contemplate it, let alone accomplish it. As for Hong Kong, there's at least one more chapter before that kicks off, to get the last of the second-years' devices activated.

Advent000: Niranjana and Allina will have some odd-ball tactics, should be fun. The Alphas won't be that much different from regular Seed, just bigger and tougher. And yes, some of the consequences Yussef and Noriko were trying to avoid, with Ekavir and Niranjana, are happening. It's a still-resolving situation.

AluciusDawn: I've been addicted to TVTropes for over a year now, thanks to someone (can't remember who, unfortunately) who reviewed Academy Blues. Still kind of embarrassed this is recommended over there, I'm not trying hard enough for it to be that good. Oh well, at least I haven't been flamed yet... Regardless, I'm glad you're enjoying this, and thanks for the review. Regarding Nanoha's absence, when I started this way back in PoV, I was just more attached to Hayate – she had more potential for going off in strange directions. The first two series did too good a job defining Nanoha and Fate, compared to Hayate. I don't dislike Nanoha, I just had more room to work with Hayate and her Knights. Keeping the large number of characters individual and interesting is difficult, but worth it. The trick is to have a few defining characteristics for each character, and stick to them whenever they show up. Laura, for instance, is always eager, fast, intuitive, almost obsessed with combat, and doesn't use real names if she can help it. I keep similar lists for each character, and hers is actually more extensive than what I just listed. I don't pull it up each time I write her lines, but the lists are always there in the back of my head. As far as being believably unpredictable, I think it was Orson Scott Card who said in one of his books on writing, 'surprise only works when you tell the reader ahead of time.' Or words to that effect. Basically, whenever I have a big surprise, I always try to work in hints and clues, or even outright warnings, in places where it makes sense. The return of Al Hanthis is the clearest example – there were hints and suggestions all the way back in the prologue, though I did resort to some dirty tricks to keep the surprise. There are a few things that are more subtle, such as who the Dark Witch is, or Hughes' membership in the Circles in Academy Blues, or Kriegsen in all three stories. With the zoom, it's a compromise I'm still trying to figure out how to balance. I don't really like doing 'large sweeping scenes', I prefer focusing on individual's views, but for the scale of these stories, especially Endless Waltz, I have to show some big scenes just to clarify _why _a lot of things are happening. It's not entirely conscious, but I snitch a lot of the style for that from David Weber, trying to have characters in situations where they have to stand back and contemplate the larger picture. As for the Side Stories, reviews and the like, I've found that separating things out like that helps me clarify and remember things in my own mind, and the Side Stories often give me ideas for tweaks to the main stories (such as Allina and Niranjana's relationship, that first occurred to me with the first Side Story). I'm glad it helps, though I do wish it wasn't as necessary for the 'full picture' (that 'All There In The Manual' entry is a pet peeve... I hate it when authors do that!). All in all, thank you for the compliments, and for the review. I hope you enjoy what's coming.

Lady Sekhmet Ka: Hacking the _Shiva_ would be more of a fun run than serious. Allina and Niranjana will be focused elsewhere shortly. As for HAL, yeah that's deliberately done for creepiness, just because it's how Allina would think – a dangerous and powerful computer in complete control of its surroundings, answerable only to her! I almost had her name it SHODAN, after another more murderous computer, but I'm more familiar with HAL. Here's the new chapter, and thanks for the review!


	25. 24 Hava Nagila

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-24 – Hava Nagila-

Hughes was less than happy to be returning to Washington, especially under these circumstances. He had known before he was fifteen that he would be going in to the Army – beyond family tradition, and despite political and propaganda claims otherwise, the military was on the forefront of science, where he wanted to be. Not the pie-in-the-sky musings on what it all meant, but the practical how-to of advanced technology. Based on that desire, even before he graduated from West Point, Hughes had known that time spent in DC was time wasted, and to be avoided at all costs.

He had been somewhat more ambitious with regards to the Circles, though even there he had elected to focus on the small and usually-marginalized Research and Development Division. He had still reached the rank of Master Adept, and collected quite the array of connections and an enviable reputation, most of which had been critical to saving what he could of the Circles after Operation Nimrod. He preferred research and experimentation to politics, but had, over the years leading up to Hayate's arrival, resigned himself to practicing the latter to achieve the former.

Now, thanks almost entirely to Hayate, he had no time for science, for research, for experiments. The move to DC, practical and reasonable as it was, much as it would simplify his responsibilities, was hateful just for that. Being in DC was a permanent reminder that he was now too damn busy trying to save his people and his world to do what he loved.

"It's your own damn fault," he muttered, glaring at the Capitol Dome and his own reflection as the Pentagon car weaved its way through DC's late evening traffic. "'Admirably proactive', Wallace called you, 'exceptional initiative'. Can't leave well enough alone, in other words."

Getting through the Pentagon's maze of security was aggravating, but Hughes had experienced it before, and was relatively prepared. Being summoned on an emergency basis by the Joint Chiefs themselves was almost the perfect way through, but the Navy Lieutenant that met him at the door probably helped more.

"Colonel," the young woman saluted sharply enough, for a Pentagon native. "The corporal will take your bags to your quarters, ACES set you up in one of their guest houses. For now, if you could please follow me, Admiral Dahvid is waiting in the Chiefs' situation room. There's been another incident."

Fishing out his ID and passes as he followed her into the building, he asked, "How bad?"

"I don't know, sir. The situation was developing when I was sent to meet you. I do know the _USS Ruben James_ is assisting an Indian Navy frigate on some sort of ASW mission. There's a submarine involved, at least, but I was not privy to the precise nature of the incident before I had to leave to escort you."

From that it was not hard to determine what had happened. Another submarine had been attacked, and there was another search-and-rescue mission on-going. Following the Lieutenant through the warren of passages and stairways, Hughes began turning the two incidents over. It was patently ludicrous that the submarines had been the targets of the attack. While he did not know the second boat, the first, the _San Jose_, had been an attack-boat, a dedicated ship-killer. The few surface attack weapons it carried – cruise missiles with conventional warheads – would not even annoy an Al Hanthis mage, let alone the city itself. A missile-boat, with its arsenal of nuclear warheads, would be another matter, but even that would probably not be all that much a concern for Al Hanthis.

The Seed had to be after something else. It was possible they were searching for any remnant artifacts from before the Cataclysm – the earlier Seed attacks had all come from the oceans, after all. But mages would be far better for such a search, not Seed. Seed were weapons, aimed at a target and set loose to destroy. So the Seed were on their way to a target somewhere, a target Al Hanthis considered valuable, or dangerous. "What is dangerous enough to dispatch that many Seed to kill it? And why were they sent alone? Not even Al Hanthis would let enough Seed to sink a submarine loose without some sort of control."

"I couldn't say, sir," the Lieutenant interrupted his thoughts, "but we're here. ID please?"

He had to present his whole ID set again, before being ushered into a large darkly lit room. Two large screens were set in one wall, with a stack of other screens on either side. A number of chairs were placed, stadium-style, facing the screens, with a trio of workstations between seats and screens. More comfortable chairs than any theater ever boasted, though. The workstations were populated, and there were four people present, three of them who definitely out-ranked him, and one foreigner whose presence seriously disturbed Hughes.

The first to speak was Hughes' direct superior, General Bergheim, United States Army. He was not welcoming, sneering, "About time you got here, Colonel. Angels clogging up the air-lanes?"

Hughes regretted it, but the hostility was not really a surprise. None of the Joint Chiefs were Circle members, and they did have cause to question his loyalty. They had not been vociferous about it, but it was present. This was, however, the most abrupt and personal attack he had so far suffered. "I saw no angels, General, and the Air Force pilot has thoroughly earned his ground-crew's ire. An F-15 with throttles to the firewall makes very good time, but it still takes time. Sir."

"Not now, Raul," the Admiral seated in the middle commented as he rose. "Colonel Hughes, welcome back to the Pentagon."

"Thank you, sir," Hughes answered.

"You know General Bergheim and General Smith, of course." Hughes nodded to both, but only got a response from the Marine. "General Earlicher is out of town, unfortunately," Dahvid continued, "but this is Colonel Huan, Defense Attaché to the Chinese ambassador. He had some information relevant to the current situation, and we're working on a bit of a quid pro quo."

Hughes studied the small Chinese officer for a moment, then carefully held out a hand. "Adept."

Everyone in the room froze, save for Huan, who merely smiled politely, and shook hands. "Master Adept Hughes. You are shorter than I expected. From the stories my fellows share, you are a towering monster."

"You match your file perfectly, Adept," Hughes countered. "How is your circle?"

"Missing me, I'm afraid," Huan answered. "You know how it is, long-term relationships strained by distance and duty. Mages and officers must both make sacrifices, that is doubly true for those of us who are both."

"Excuse me," Admiral Dahvid interrupted, "but you're a Circle mage?"

"Ah, yes, Admiral," Huan said, still smiling politely, "my apologies, but keeping that to myself is a life-long habit."

Dahvid did not look the least bit reassured. "You're Circle, you make Hughes nervous, and you're from China. You're one of those Revenant terrorists."

Huan's smile faded to a flat look. "I am many things, Admiral. I am no mad bomber. I and my circle disagree with Master Adept Hughes on many issues. The Yagami witch is one of the lesser items, actually. As for my circle, we most strongly object to his sole control of the Circles. No one man should have such power."

"Mostly I agree," Hughes said. "In counter, however, show me some Master Adepts I can trust not to stab me in the back and force Hayate to slaughter all of us, I'll gladly go back to my lab. Until then, I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt, Adept, and trust that you are here to help deal with Al Hanthis, not hinder our efforts?"

Huan nodded, polite smile reappearing. "Of course, Master Adept. We do recognize the priorities of survival, after all. You may be misguided, but you are still a Circle mage."

"Good enough."

Dahvid, however, pressed him. "I'm curious, Colonel Huan, is your government aware of your membership in the Circles?"

"In general," Huan answered easily. "Our government is somewhat less worried about such dual loyalties. They realize, after all, that officers and mages both serve the People."

Dahvid considered that for a few seconds, then nodded slowly. "Well, in that case, Commander McAffee, time to target?"

One of the men at the work stations looked up, "Ten minutes, Admiral. The Indians' ground-based flight is already on-site, but _Ruben James_' bird is still a few minutes out."

"Very good. Gentlemen, have a seat. Colonel Hughes, if I could speak with you, I have a few technical questions." The other officers took the hint, even Dahvid's nominal equals moving farther back in the seating. Once Hughes was seated, Dahvid leaned over. "Actually, Colonel, I have some advice. You're in a very uncomfortable position, for everyone, and needs must when the devil drives. Frankly, the fact that you are both an Army officer and the commander of the Circles is aggravating a lot of people, and Bergheim's the least of them. People on the Hill are asking questions, officers in all branches are asking questions, Hell, we've even had other nations asking questions. They don't like the idea of some of their officers reporting to some American. The work you've been doing to contain the Revenants has helped keep things quiet, and the fact that the President likes you gives you very good cover, but that won't last forever."

Hughes grimaced at the analysis, but could not fault it. "The timing isn't right to retire, sir," he answered. "The paperworks drawn up, but now is not the time. A surprising amount of my authority over the Ops people is based on my military rank. Other mages in the military follow me because of that, bringing their circles with them. If it weren't for Al Hanthis, in a few months I would have submitted the paperwork and been gone by the end of the year. As it is," he shook his head, "I don't see it happening any time soon. No one can afford for the Circles' leadership to be unstable right now."

"Agreed," Dahvid answered, "and I wasn't telling you to retire, or anything else, actually. Just commenting. No, I have advice. Your official position with the Arcane Confirmation and Evaluation Section is an opportunity to relieve a lot of the questions and concerns about you. ACES is, technically, a civilian operation. It's under military direction, but everyone knows it's a bunch of you Circle people, with some DOD types to keep things focused. We put you in charge of it not because you're an Army officer – there are already seven other officers and twelve enlisted personnel assigned to ACES – but because you're the head of the Circles. So, going forward, it would probably be better if you _don't _show up in uniform. In uniform, you're an Army Colonel. Out of uniform, you're Grand Master of an independent international intelligence network."

"All due respect Admiral, but that won't work. It sounds nice, mind you, but I am an Army officer."

Dahvid smirked. "Yup. But try coming in here in a suit and tie next time. You'll notice a difference, not just in how Bergheim acts, either, the paranoid old codger. You'll also find it easier to put him in his place. I'll be blunt, Grand Master..."

"If we're being blunt," Hughes held up one hand, "The correct form of address is Master Adept. 'Grand Master' is a label the more vocal Revenants gave me, as an insult. Sort of like the old media complaints about 'King George'. My own people adopted it to spite the Revenants, and over my objections."

Dahvid studied him for a few seconds, then nodded slowly. "Very well, Master Adept. Though that sort of 'first among equals' will only last so long. But, as I was saying, we have no use for Colonel Hughes. We have hundreds of colonels, any of whom could fill your military position. We, not just the US, but the world, needs Grand Master Hughes. The only person we know who could fill that role is the Yagami woman, and we don't know her. We know _you_, mostly. Give it a try, Master Adept. If I'm wrong, you can always go back to wearing your uniform. Now, however, it looks like our bird is on site."

The Navy helicopter was patently a late arrival. What looked like a Russian Alfa was on the surface, but even Hughes could tell it would not be there for long. It was wallowing badly, rolled halfway over on one side. There were a frightening number of rents in the out hull, and Hughes could see at least one hatch had been ripped open. In the water around the sinking vessel were bodies, most of them immobile. Standing on the wreck were Seed, more than twenty of them.

"Jesus," Bergheim said, "What are they using to do that sort of damage?"

"Their claws," Hughes answered, "and unnatural strength. I doubt they can get through a titanium hull very quickly, but they can find all the cracks and seams, all the weak points. No physical defense can stop a Seed. Only killing one can stop it."

Dahvid was staring intently at the video. "How do you kill them?"

"Pre-Cataclysm, something like that cannon the Revenants used in Egypt a couple weeks ago, only with a physical projectile. These days... we've only got projections, but standard anti-armor weapons should suffice, if they're accurate enough to hit an evading man-sized target. Low probability of hits and kills, though. It's going to take _a lot _of shots. Do we have any information on how many Seed are in this pack?"

"Approximately a thousand," Huan commented, "according to our people in Egypt."

During that discussion, the Seed began abandoning the submarine. Watching them move was fascinating, in a sickening way. They were smooth, graceful, no wasted motion or unnecessary actions. Then he noticed a trio of Seed, the last ones on the boat, and discrepancies registered.

"Commander McAffee," he said, as the trio disappeared in the water, "are you recording this as well?"

"Um, yes Colonel."

"Can you bring the recording up on another screen, rewind to those last Seed."

"Just a moment, sir."

The second screen switched to earlier, and began repeating the prior scene. "Stop there," Hughes ordered, leaning forward as he stared at the figures extended in dives. "Son of a bitch," he whispered.

"Colonel?"

Hughes acknowledged Dahvid's question, but asked, "Do you see that, Adept Huan? The one on the end, it's too large for a Seed."

"I see it, Master Adept," Huan said slowly, "but I do not know what it means."

"Neither do I, and that's a problem."

"Gentlemen," Dahvid sounded rather annoyed, "_what _do you see?"

"Ah, sorry, Admiral," Hughes replied, still staring at the frozen image. "The Seed on the left end of the trio, it's visibly larger than the others. Seed don't vary in size. They all fall within an inch or so of height, within a pound or two of weight. The two Hayate autopsied were within a couple millimeters and grams of each other. They aren't grown, they're _made_, manufactured. A larger Seed argues for something strange."

"They already approach the point of diminishing returns, in terms of size and mass versus strength and toughness," Huan added. "Without magic to enhance them, they are bound by physical limits such as the square-cube law, and the materials they are made from become less efficient at larger sizes. I doubt anyone would notice a difference between normal Seed and the one we are looking at now, but much larger and the strength and toughness gains would be off-set by speed reduction and more strength lost just holding itself up. Also, why? Seed are dangerous enough as they are, why make one larger when they have such numbers available?"

"That probably depends on their target," Hughes told him. "Perhaps they need an assault element, or these are some newer version they came up with. If they created an improved Seed in the Void, they may not have the resources to produce many."

"The second option sounds more probable, Master Adept," Huan said, "as there is nothing in Hong Kong that would be any more vulnerable to a larger Seed."

Hughes turned to study Huan for a moment. "You're the second person in as many days to tell me they're going to Hong Kong. What's your reasoning?"

Huan shrugged. "We have representatives the world over. We have been far more active these last decades, and more successful, in Africa than the US has ever been. Some of our people remain in Cairo – they see the opportunities outweighing the risks – and they have overheard Al Hanthis mages talking. Soldiers will complain, when others get choice assignments. We have reliable information that Al Hanthis will strike at Hong Kong within a few days, Seed under cover of mages."

"The Seed course could be headed there, Admiral," McAffee offered. "First strike off the Arabian peninsula, second two days later off the Indian coast. They're moving fast, but not impossibly so. Do you know if they need to stop and rest, Colonel?"

"Think of them as Hollywood's image of sharks," Hughes told him, "always moving, always killing, dangerous just to look at. They probably aren't stopping, swimming from dawn to dawn, eating whatever they catch on the way. The only weakness of the Seed, from Al Hanthis' viewpoint, is controlling them once they're unleashed. It's impossible. You give them a target, and they destroy it. Once that's done, they may or may not go dormant again, and if they don't, they'll go on a rampage. Hong Kong is a long way to send Seed unescorted, but doable. Adept Huan, how are your people going to respond?"

Huan studied him carefully for a few moments, then shrugged. "For myself, I am to request American assistance in the form of intelligence monitoring of the Seed's progression, and supplies of anti-armor weapons. Our projections indicate even your nominally obsolescent LAWS would be useful. My requests are less in expectation of being filled, than in showing China's willingness to work together with the only other superpower to resolve the Al Hanthis situation. For the People's Liberation Army... The Hong Kong Exchange is already being moved to Beijing, on a temporary basis. As many businesses as possible are relocating their work and personnel elsewhere, mostly in Shanghai. The entire city is being evacuated and will be empty within three days from now. A miracle of Chinese organization, yes? At the same time, an infantry division is being moved into the city. We are unwilling to risk our people, but we will not yield the city."

Hughes had never had much respect for the PLA. Sure, it was big, but it was conscript based and a product of China's philosophy of Bureaucracy over Individuals. The PLA relied on numbers, on economic intimidation, and sheer production power, instead of tactics, technology, and human spirit. But listening to Huan, he was reminded that the US Army had been there once before, and those who served in the US armed forces then were still known as 'The Greatest Generation'. "Make arrangements with your government, Adept. I don't know how many, yet, but every Master level and higher circle I can lay my hands on will be en route to Hong Kong shortly. Your superiors will be hearing from Hayate shortly as well, if they have not already. My recommendation is to let her lead. She's smart enough to know her own limits, and more experienced than her age suggests."

"I will be guided by you, Master Adept."

"Admiral," Hughes turned back to Dahvid, "I'm afraid I can only offer a little advice about the Seed. We have myths, legends, and a little information from incidents in Egypt and Kyoto."

"We had an encounter," Huan interrupted, "in Tibet. One Seed. It killed a number of soldiers, but seemed more interested in avoiding contact. We lost it in the mountains. It was headed west, probably towards Egypt."

Dahvid nodded, "What information can you give us?"

"Don't let anything that isn't airborne within miles of the Seed. If you have any ships in the area, and the pack starts to move towards it, have it get out of there as fast as possible. If you track them with helos, _don't _use the dipping sonar. Seed will climb the cable as easily as Rangers go up a knotted rope. Other than that, track them, find out where they're going, and warn off anything that might be in their path. They have to have encountered other shipping, but the only thing they've attacked have been submarines."

"It's probable that the submarines were tracking them. It's not always obvious which surface ships have sonar capabilities sufficient to track biologicals," Dahvid commented. "So are they trying to keep us from tracking them, or just eliminating whatever gets in their way?"

Long flight or not, figuring out what the Seed were doing, and what the US could do about them, was a beguiling question challenge. Frightening, but beguiling. Almost enough to make Hughes forget that he hated being in DC.

00000

Meghan was a little worried to find herself completely unconcerned when it came to her turn to activate her device. It took her a few days afterwards to figure out why – whether it worked or not, she already had the best part of magic. She could shape-shift, almost at will, into whatever form took her fancy. Each form was easier to learn than the last, though she had not tried any really exotic forms. The craziest she had gotten was the form of a tiger shark, in a tank Lotte-nee-chan had put together specifically for the test. But she could shape-shift into essentially anything.

So activating her device was little different from any other school project. It was important, yes, and her grade depended on it, but she was hardly reliant upon it. This was no more stressful than any of the papers for Vita-sensei, or Aria-sensei. She would have been a little more nervous, except almost everyone else had already gone through this.

Walking up to the dormant construct, she rested a hand on it, and had a few seconds of doubt as nothing occurred to her to say. She had to descend into a full trance before she heard or felt anything, the desire in her heart. "To be the world, free of form and binding, to end the limits of form and rule, Longinus, henshin."

She sensed the impression, the device taking its identity from her, adopting the amorphous self-image Megan reveled in. There was a sense of instability in it, a sense of shifting that she remembered from her shape-shifting. When the device finally stabilized in her hand, she came out of her trance, to find herself holding an eight-foot spear, a deep red in color. The last third was forked, the two tines sharp blades. The haft was two strips, spiraled together. Just beneath the cross-arms was a small blue sphere, wrapped in the spiral.

"Nice," she murmured, running one hand over the separated spiral of the haft. "Hope it shifts with me."

"We'll get to that, Chibi-nee-chan," Lotte told her, "but first things first. You need a barrier jacket."

"Hai, sensei. Longinus, Morphic Ward." For a second, she felt the same shivery instability she associated with her shape-shifts, but it was at an odd remove. By the time she figured out it was Longinus altering her school uniform's fabric into the raw material of her barrier jacket, the shift was complete. Instead of the skirt, blouse and jacket she had started with, Megan was now wearing a short-limbed body-suit, under shorts and a ridiculously over-sized bomber jacket. The body suit and jacket were black, the shorts red, and all of them seemed oily and hazy, not quite real, or possibly not quite _stable_.

"Now that is nice," Lotte-nee-chan commented, running a finger across Megan's shoulders. The 'black' jacket rippled under her touch, only a little, but not at all like fabric should respond to physical contact. "This is similar to Laura's Gaussian Field, avoiding rather than opposing. Should be malleable enough for your shape-shifting as well. Speaking of which... let's start where we began, shall we? Show me a wolf."

Megan nodded, stepping back a bit for room, and began the shift with a thought. It was habit, by now, to simply drop whatever she was holding, and she released Longinus without thinking. Instead of dropping to the ground, however, the twin spiral of the haft unwound, even as her barrier jacket flowed. When the shift was complete, her barrier jacket was now an oil-slick coating on the individual strands of her fur, while the 'staff' was wrapped around her torso, with one of the blades along each foreleg, and the gem core nestled between her shoulder-blades.

Megan studied the changes for a few seconds, shifting in place, then took a few tentative steps. When nothing untoward happened, she went a little faster, a full circuit around Lotte-nee-chan, before looking up at her favorite teacher. _'Everything works fine, sensei,'_ she said, _'Logninus isn't inhibiting my movements, nor is the barrier jacket.'_

"Let's test that, shall we. I know you've been thinking of something special just for today, haven't you? Let's see it."

Megan hesitated, then shifted back to human. "Um.... sensei... that's... not really... real. I'm not sure it'll work."

Lotte blinked at her, then laughed, "Ah, come on chibi-nee-chan! We've worked so long on this one! It'll work. If it doesn't, Shamal-san's right over there. She and I can put you back to right in a moment, you know that. It will work, Megan. Go ahead."

"But it's... Lotte-nee-chan, I'm really nervous about this," Megan admitted softly, "I've never tried anything this complex before, anything this... weird."

Lotte ruffled her hair gently. "You'll be fine, chibi-nee-chan. All your forms are equally complex, this one's just unique. The melding and mergers will be smoothed over by Longinus. Come on, please?"

Megan almost protested again. The 'war form' she had come up with was not something she was entirely comfortable with, even if the original idea had been hers. Lotte-nee-chan had done a lot of the research and biology, but the ideas that drove it were Megan's. The Seed made her too nervous, especially now, and she had wanted a form that could stand up to one. The answer to that was so complicated, though, so totally unique – there were literally no other examples of it anywhere.

"Lotte, don't be pushy," Hayate said. "Megan, what about this form has you so nervous?"

Megan actually flinched at that. She had not precisely been keeping it a secret, not like she had hidden her shape-shifting all last year, but Hayate would not like her taking such a risk. "It's a chimera form, Hayate-sensei. A merger of... several other forms I know."

Hayate frowned thoughtfully at that, but Shamal practically exploded. "A chimera form?! Lotte, what were you thinking suggesting she try something like that?"

Lotte's ears went flat, her expression mulish. "I was thinking that my favorite student is the best shape-shifter I have ever met, and one of the best on record. She's good enough to drive Yuuno-kun up the wall, and we've taken every precaution we can take. Chimera forms aren't impossible, just difficult."

"And dangerous," Hayate said. "Megan, did she explain why they are so dangerous?"

"Different biologies react differently," Megan answered, "like how horses and humans react differently to morphine. Also, chimera forms are easy to get trapped in, confused about what is 'you' and what is the form. I know all that, Hayate-sensei, I'm only nervous because I haven't tried this form on my own yet. It's done, it's just..."

When she trailed off, Hayate nodded, "I understand. You can try it if you want, Megan, I'll trust you and Lotte to have done this carefully. But Lotte, if she says no, drop it. And I want to see the full plan for the form tonight."

"I'll do it," Megan said slowly, clutching Longinus tighter. Then she repeated, more forcefully, "I'll do it. Longinus, Henshin Werewolf."

The shift this time was a little slower, but held none of the drain she was used to. She half-expected it to hurt, or to feel off, but when the flowing sensation faded, it felt no different from her usual shifts. The form itself was ridiculously complicated - Feline eyes for vision, and feline claws on her feet for traction and flexibility; Canine ears and nose for senses and tail for balance; Her fur was more bear-like than wolf-like, for better warmth, and the claws on her hands were bear-claws for greater strength and grip than wolf claws. All of that was layered over the most uncomfortable part – a muscle plan and composition taken directly from the Seed, the most efficient and powerful she and Lotte-nee-chan had been able to find, and the least natural part of the shift.

The only problem was, the wolf-like muzzle full of fangs was totally unsuitable to human speech. _'I think it worked, Lotte-sensei,'_ she said, turning in place while she studied her new form. _'Nothing feels off, not even as bad as the first time I shifted to a bird.'_

"Sounds good, chibi-nee-chan," Lotte replied, "now hold still a second while Shamal-san checks you. I told her you're fine, but she insists." Lotte sighed and slumped theatrically, "Why does no one ever trust me?"

Shamal's scan was quick, in deference to the class, but thorough. Megan could feel the energies of the scan working through her, an unpleasant tingle that was nothing at all like shape-shifting. The school mother stepped back after a moment, frowning slightly. "There does not appear to be anything wrong, the various forms are melded onto a human base biology fairly well. But I'm going to have to study it for a while before I can be certain.

_'She almost sounds disappointed there's nothing wrong with me,'_ Megan complained to Lotte.

_'Be nice, she hasn't had any major injuries to fix in months, and she really is worried about you. Chimera forms are dangerous, it's just you're good enough to handle that danger.'_ "For now, chibi-nee-chan, why don't you shift back to normal and we can move on to my next victim."

Megan shifted back to human form, then submitted to yet another scan by Shamal, before finally letting Longinus collapse into storage mode. Instead of shrinking to some convenient shape, however, the spear unraveled again, draping the blades down her back and wrapping her shoulders and arms in the hafts. The crystal at least shrank, settling into the hollow of her throat like it was a necklace.

"Not bad, chibi-nee-chan," Lotte told her once more, "but you probably should figure out a less flamboyant storage form. People might think you're boasting.

00000

Szash stopped on entering her outer office, studying her aides before moving on to her own office. She had final preparations for Hong Kong to see to, but Galli's glance caught her attention. "You need something, Galli?"

"More confused, General," Galli answered. "I've been reviewing the preliminary reports from our scouts. Do you have a few minutes?"

Szash nodded, moving over to perch on the edge of his desk. There were chairs she could have used, but sitting on the desk was one of her long-standing 'fights' with Eri. "Go ahead."

Galli quite deliberately leaned back to clear the line of fire, then explained, "Most of the scouts report just what we expected. The local satellite networks are mostly primitive, but accurate for what they are. No one is trying to spoof us or feed us false information. Not yet, at least. The Yagami woman's network is both more cohesive and more advanced, and someone is actively trying to prevent us from using them, probably some form of adaptive AI. Whoever it is, they're good enough that we can't rely on those satellites and are mostly ignoring them. But the primitive networks are accurate enough, they show about what we expected at this point. A little more activity in some regions, less in others, but really only overhead imagery, none of the human interaction and detailed knowledge we need for accurate predictions.

"What is bothering me, though, is Japan. The satellites all provide the same level of detail over Japan as elsewhere, and a ridiculously high volume of communications traffic. But our scouts can't find the islands."

Szash knew he was playing with her, the statement was just too blatantly ridiculous for him to be serious. But Galli was always serious, even when he was joking. "I'm going to guess that you have some sort of explanation for that statement."

Galli shrugged. "Wish I did, General. The scout teams sent to Japan – and we sent a third team to study the effect after the first two teams got lost – literally _cannot find_ the islands. We know where they are, we even used the local satellites to track the teams in real-time. They insist they fly in straight lines west to east from the China coast, but the closer they get to Japan, the further north or south they turn. Speed doesn't seem to be a factor, though altitude does. The third team is still testing this... effect... but at present, it appears we can't get any closer to the Japanese coast than forty miles."

"Forty miles?"

"Yes, General."

"How close to that is Hayate's school? Can we get visual at forty miles?"

Galli shook his head, "No, ma'am, both due to range and intervening terrain. Not unless we came in from overhead. An orbital bombardment, if we can rebuild or find and reactivate one of the old ZES platforms, would be our best bet to strike her base."

Szash grimaced, "but we can't guarantee a clean kill with an orbital bombardment. Damn. So much for ending the war in one strike." Pushing off Galli's desk, she strode over to the windows, to her thinking spot. "We can't get to her base, and she can't get to ours. We can each withdraw there whenever things get too rough, to rest and recuperate."

"Japan is drastically limited in its resources, General," Eri reminded her. "They have to import almost everything, even basic food supplies."

"So do we," Szash reminded her. "Remember, Eri, we were a decade or so away from running out of some critical resources ourselves, that's part of why the Conclave was so eager to pull through the fracture. A few years of study would have been safer, but... failed spells and all that. Eri, shelve the plans for the Kyoto strike. Don't abandon them, but don't waste time on them either. Galli, while we're hitting Hong Kong, send a full squad of scouts to Japan. I want to know everything there is to know about that barrier or illusion or redirection or _whatever _that thing is. If we can't get at Hayate in Japan, our strongest opponent is safe from us and we're reduced to a slugging match. I don't like slugging matches, never had the build for them."

00000

Lotte turned from Megan to grin at her 'next victim'. "Natalia?"

Allison was grateful for the distraction, turning away from Megan. Megan was a nice girl, and far from the monster legend described, but her shape-shifting reminded Allison of nothing so much as the skinwalkers of Navajo legend. Indeed, Megan's abilities gave credence to those horror stories, as someone less scrupulous than Hayate's students could abuse that power quite easily. Watching Megan shape-shift, or realizing that the 'critter' she occasionally saw prowling the woods was her classmate, gave Allison a severe case of the wiggins.

Natalia, for all her strangeness, was far less disturbing to Allison than Megan was. The Russian was quiet, withdrawn, and a little too death-happy for Allison, but she was basically understandable. Watching her rest her hand on her device, Allison felt no fear of Natalia, just an impatience for her turn.

"I have stood before the Gates," Natalia said slowly, "and seen my terrors made real. Stand with me, and change this fate, that none need suffer my curse again. Awake and serve me, Koschei."

It was almost boring by now, watching the transition from construct to active device. Natalia's took a second or two longer than the prior examples, but what was really surprising to Allison was how Natalia stumbled and almost fell when it was over. Her eye-patch was gone, and she had a look of utter horror on her face. It was only there for a second, though, as Natalia caught herself with her new staff and screwed her eyes shut. It was black, eight feet or so long, the last two feet separated into a three-pronged grip around a clear crystal cylinder.

"Natalia?" Lotte helped her steady herself, "You all right?"

"Yes, sensei," Natalia replied, "it's just... Koschei... made me prove myself worthy. He is... not the most cooperative of devices, apparently." She gestured with her free hand, "Shroud." The barrier jacket the formed around her was just as dark as Allison expected, a black coat with hood over black shirt and pants, and a new eye-patch, solid black with an Al Hazred character in the center. Only after the patch was in place did Natalia open her eyes again.

Lotte looked her over, poking and prodding at her armor as usual, but did not say anything until she got to the eye-patch. "What's this mean?"

"Bringer of life," Natalia answered. "I'm tired of seeing death everywhere I look."

"Good girl," Lotte actually smiled at that, "and you're barrier jacket's up to my exacting standards. Passable, passable. A little on the light side, but you're not much of a fighter, are you?"

"No, sensei. I'll stick to my libraries, thank you. Knowledge is life, after all."

Lotte accepted that with a nod, "Anything you want to show off before we get to the tedious bits?"

Natalia shook her head, "No thank you, sensei, I'm good. I want to speak with Hayate-sensei before I will risk some of my more unique spells."

"Fair enough. Then, next victim! Allison, dear Allison, it's time to show up your boyfriend!"

Allison felt a spurt of embarrassed anger, "Beanpole's not my boyfriend."

Lotte's instant response was, "Who says I was talking about Noah? Why did you jump right to that conclusion, Allison... are you sweet on Noah as well? Poor Toshirou, he's probably so hurt by your..."

"That's enough, sensei," Noriko called a split-second ahead of Hayate. "We know you're just having fun, but please?"

Lotte rolled her eyes dramatically, but she was still grinning, "All right, all right, I'll behave. Careful, Noriko, or I'll start calling you Mistress as well. You sound just like she did at your age."

"Thank you, Lotte-sensei. Allison, my apologies for interrupting."

Allison waved that off. She should have known better than to get into a verbal sparring match with Lotte, there was too much cat in the familiar for her to back down from a challenge. Instead, Allison turned to her own device. "On the hunt or resting quiet, loose with friends or 'gainst enemies vile, I go where I will and none the wiser. Sing me to battle, Gallóglaigh."

The rush of energy was nothing – a little more turbulent than she was used to, feeling almost like Noriko's description of 'an over-active child', but controllable. What she had trouble with was the sudden urge to vanish into her cloak and start stalking Lotte, pay her back for the 'boyfriend' joke. The prank-like impulse was unlike her, but the challenge of her skills was right up her alley. She almost gave in, almost let the fade take her, but restrained herself with the thought of pissing off Vita. Vita hated it when she disappeared, claimed it was cheating.

Once she got over that impulse, found herself staring at a short sword in her right hand, and was, for a moment, a little disappointed. Gallóglaigh was less than four feet in total length, shaped similarly to an over-sized bowie-knife. The hardened disk around the processor core was smaller than the palm of her hand, set slightly 'above' the spine, which was itself almost a half inch thick, just high enough to put its blade-side in line with the edge. There was a short thin cross-guard below it, a textured metal grip under her hand, and a ring pommel.

Flipping the blade around her hand, testing its balance and swing, though, she began to see the utility of its small size. Gallóglaigh was no show-piece, but it balanced perfectly, the blade was sharp enough to shave when she slid it along her arm, and it was functional. The cartridge chamber was beneath the pommel, which rotated out of the way, giving her a smaller magazine than Luke, but plenty for her plans.

"No hunting with that thing," Lotte warned her, breaking her out of her focus. "It's a mage device, not a pocket knife."

Allison just grinned back at her, "But sensei, how else am I supposed to hunt mages?" Lotte blinked in surprise, and Allison realized just how blood-thirsty she must look. Relaxing and chuckling, "Don't worry, sensei, I'm no vigilante. But I'm not putting up with Laura's idea of 'lessons' for nothing."

Lotte relaxed, shivered once, then muttered, "You looked just like Nee-chan when she gets all vengeful, for a second. Don't do that again. Now, barrier jacket please."

"Hai, sensei. Gallóglaigh, Leathers."

Allison's barrier jacket was, in her opinion, much simpler than the others. Just pants and jacket, in mottled shades of brown and gray leather, with leather-strip netting over almost all of it. The fit was a little looser than she would have preferred, but that would keep it from getting in her way. It even came with a leather scabbard for Gallóglaigh, a leather strip around her forehead tying her hair back, and a hood hanging loose off her shoulders.

Sheathing the blade, Allison had to hunt a second for where her pockets went, and just found the test cartridge when Lotte finished poking at her. Unlike with her classmates barrier jackets, Lotte was frowning fiercely. "I was worried about this," she said as she stepped back and crossed her arms. "Your problem with shields extends to the barrier jacket. This will stand up to most mundane small-arms – pistols and most rifles – but even the basic busters the first-years are learning will punch right through this. And there's no redirection, like Laura's and Megan's."

Allison shrugged, having half expected it. She could manage a solid shield by now, but it took far more effort than it was worth, and her shields remained far and away the weakest in her class. "It's not that big a deal, sensei. I'm fast and sneaky. If I'm getting shot at, I've already screwed up."

"Lotte, try sensing her," Hayate said, "magically. Gallóglaigh is playing to her strengths, even now."

Lotte gave her a questioning look, then turned back to Allison, and muttered something under her breath. Allison caught a brief glow to her eyes, like cat eyes in the dark, then Lotte's head rolled almost ninety degrees to the side and her ears went off in different directions. "That is one of the oddest things I have ever seen. Allison's head, floating there in space. She's not quite gone to magical senses, but there's... a haze? Hmm, a nice effect, worth exploring, but we still need to improve the basic toughness. Nothing is truly impossible to find, and you're going to need to be tough enough to stand up to whatever does find you."

Allison almost sighed, recognizing the implicit scheduling of more sessions with Noah and grueling sessions with Lotte, but nodded. "Understood, sensei."

00000

Hughes finally found his new office at roughly noon the next day. On arriving at the Arcane Confirmation and Evaluation Section shortly after seven thirty, Hughes had been given a whirlwind tour, which had mostly consisted of a series of meet-and-greets. There was a single simple work-room, still being finished, in the basement, but most of ACES small building was filled with fairly mundane office spaces. He met his new subordinates, if informally, and was mostly pleased. He had ordered ACES put together back in May, but the actual formation of the consulting company out of various circles had been accomplished by others.

He was dog tired, and still a little uncertain of his precise role – in Washington more than ACES – when he did finally reach his office. Bergheim had been the worst part of the night before, his blatant hostility coloring the entire meeting. The fact that said meeting had not finished until somewhere around two in the morning, and Hughes had arrived at ACES before eight, meant that Hughes was currently very short on sleep.

Business never did wait, though. When Lucius Heller finally showed him into his office, introducing him again to his secretary Jennifer Trudeau, there was a man in a suit waiting for him.

"This is Special Agent DeMauro, sir, FBI," Jennifer told him. "He was scheduled to meet with you back at Fort Tesla the day after tomorrow."

"My apologies for arriving early, Grand Master," DeMauro said, extending a hand, "but since you're in DC now, I have some... moderately urgent matters to discuss with you. Regarding a matter you asked my colleagues to look into a few months ago."

Shaking DeMauro's hand, Hughes needed a few seconds to remember what, precisely, he had asked the FBI for. Tiredness and more urgent intervening concerns had pushed the matter lower in his priorities. When he did, though, he frowned. "Shanghai."

DeMauro nodded, "Yes sir. Do you have some time to speak privately?"

"Heller," Hughes said, "give me half an hour, then we'll start in on those personnel availability reports."

"Understood, Master Adept."

"Come with me, DeMauro."

The FBI agent picked up his briefcase, and followed Hughes into his new and yet-unseen sanctum. It proved to be depressingly bland, lacking any of the personal touches his old office had possessed, and definitely lacking the comfortably worn-in feel of an older building. This was sparkling new, perfectly finished, and utterly boring. "Have a seat," Hughes waved at the chairs arranged around a table to one side, while he took another seat, "what have you got for me?"

DeMauro spoke while pulling several thin files out of his briefcase. "I'm the lead officer on the investigation, which doesn't mean much – I've got one junior field agent helping me, and I may loose him shortly. Kidnapping case is heating up, and the counter-intelligence department is getting short-shrift this year, none of which really matter. The fact of the matter is, the FBI is extremely uncomfortable with this investigation. We are not in the habit of house-cleaning private organizations, don't want to be in that habit, and a number of our agents are of the opinion that we should be investigating you, not your traitors. But your people are not the ones blowing up buildings, so we're mostly willing to help. That will probably be easier, if Atlantis gets any more over-active and the US gets officially involved. Officially, our current involvement is based on the possibility that current or former US military personnel have passed or are passing information to the Chinese.

"As far as the Shanghai incident, however, we've taken preliminary looks at most of the people involved, including you, and reached three major conclusions. The first you already warned us about – the Circles records are atrocious. We're still trying to make heads or tales of some of them, and whoever or whatever came up with your filing and record systems was a world-class schizophrenic. The second is, thanks to the chaos in your records, by our usual criteria everyone involved in the Shanghai mission is equally suspect. You all have some gaping holes in your backgrounds.

"The good news is that by using a little comparative analysis, we've found three people who are stand-out suspicious. In all three cases, they had just enough information to pass your checks – in two cases, _exactly_ enough information. The third, Law, we are less suspicious of. We managed to get some information on him out of Japan – he was one of the mages captured at the Yagami Academy back in February, and officially he's a Red Army infantryman. Apparently he didn't make the jump, but he was part of the Circle security teams on the perimeter. When the Chinese repatriated their troops, he got sent with them, and promptly hopped a flight for the US and your team.

"These two, though," DeMauro slid two folders across next to each other. "These are currently our best bets for your mole, Mister Hughes. Your records of them contain precisely enough information to meet your background checks. Even better, we have tentatively confirmed that both of them died in China, during Yagami's counter-attack. The list of casualties the Bureau provided you shows both of them as 'dead due to burnout', whatever that means. With your permission, Grand Master, we would like to pull both of them in for questioning."

Hughes stared at the two names for a few seconds, then put his elbows on the table and dropped his face into his hands. "I am sick and tired of this politics shit," he muttered. Then he sighed, shoved himself upright, and fixed DeMauro with a steady look. "I'm afraid I can't allow that just now, Agent DeMauro. The Dogs are going to Hong Kong as soon as I can find them an airplane, and I can't afford _not_ to send them. I need the team functional, not doubting each other or thinking of defecting. So, until after Hong Kong, you can't pull in any of the Dogs for questioning. After Hong Kong, though... after that, you and I, and a few of your colleagues, are going to Fort Knox to have a little chat with Schuster and his kids."

00000

As Juliet stepped up to her device, she wondered if she qualified as cheating. For weeks now, she had been meditating at least once a day, searching for her activation phrase, the 'self's vision of the self' Aria had called it. She had spent just as much time forming the image of her completed device, fixing that in her mind as best she could. She was afraid of what she would find in herself, and wanted no surprises, especially not after Marcel's activation.

Having found her phrase, however, she had a new worry – none of the teachers were going to like it, not even Vita-sensei.

"I have dreamed all my futures," she said, remembering the blasted Shaman, "relived my past, and witnessed the destruction at my command. I reject that fate, those futures." She had no doubt she would have to reiterate that time and again, but she would not let that rejection be anything but true. "The world will not tremble at my rage. Rise, my Glaive, stand to my side," the power was rushing through her now, anger and joy and the thrill of limitless strength, "and let us instead shake the pillars of Heaven!"

For a few seconds, she thought she really was making the room shake. It felt like being in an earthquake, as everything shifted and shook, nothing moving the same way as everything else. The energy flowing into Glaive peaked, then cut off abruptly, taking with it the shaking. The weapon in her hands was very similar to Testarossa-sensei's Bardiche, but different enough to be recognizable. The wide blade formed a smooth arc and flat spine, instead of angled lines, set atop the shaft instead of along it. The core was sealed under armor, but still located at the base of the blade. A second tube ran down the back of the haft, halfway to the grip, with a loading port at its lowest point. It would have been perfect, except the entire thing was various shades of dark red, with the blade being the brightest part – the shade of fresh blood.

More than its weight in her hands, Juliet could feel the device's presence. It was not so much in her mind as everywhere, around her, in her, beside her, behind her, Glaive ready and waiting, eager to be used. It was not – quite – bloodthirsty, but definitely more eager than she liked. Even without doing anything, Glaive was tugging at her magic, like a child picking at her pants-leg, looking for attention, for trouble to get into. "Glaive, Plate-mail."

Her barrier jacket was a deeper shade of red than Vita-sensei's, with fewer light points. It was primarily a long high-collared coat, closed by a panel across the front, but the front skirt open over dark pants. Fingerless gloves with metal studs on the knuckles covered her hands, improving her grip on Glaive, and armored boots protected her feet. Despite the use, she could still feel Glaive tugging at her magic, and began to realize that the device would probably never stop.

A sudden jab at her shoulder distracted her, but she managed to keep from doing more than flinch. Lotte was standing there, poking at her in earnest now. Glaive started shivering in her hand, and spells floated into her mind, various ways to get Lotte to stop, most of them surprisingly violent. She had no interest, for instance, in finding out if it really was possible to turn someone inside out.

"Better," Lotte said, "not as good as Noah-kun's, but better. Solid protection, not too restrictive, and Vita'll love the colors. Should've done the hat, though. You'd look cute with rabbits on your head."

"Glaive doesn't like you, sensei," Juliet replied, "thinks you'd look better dodging buster spells."

Lotte flicked an ear and grinned wider. "Do you really think you're good enough to _make_ me dodge?"

"Not me, sensei," Juliet countered, "Glaive. He's... rather forcefully minded. Lot of aggressive suggestions. It's not..." She had to pause to figure out what she meant, for she had not heard a thing from Glaive. "It's not talking to me, not a voice, not sending me pictures, but... I know what it means, what it's trying to do. Like predicting someone you've known for years."

"The device is supposed to be easy for you to know," Lotte reminded her, "its personality is impressed from yours, after all. Though I do worry, now, about just how pushy you are, if your device is so eager. Shall we put it to the test? Girls, back up over here, please." A test course formed through the workroom, similar to but varied from the one the boys had used the day before. "Same test as yesterday, with a twist. Since there are fewer of you, you're going to get to deal with Aria-nee-chan and I at the same time. Megan, you're up first."

00000

Author's Note: The devices are now done (save for the twins, but they'll be along much later). The girls have all had much more established and differentiated devices than the boys, mostly because they're all raging prima donnas.

Longinus: named for the Lance of Longinus, lesser cousin of the Spear of Destiny, according to one SoD mythology. In Megan's case, the appearance and properties are based on the Lance from Evangelion, including the xerox-Lances used by the production Evas. Mostly chosen because the highly morphic presentation in Eva matches Megan's magic.

Koschei: named for a Russian myth of an unkillable monster. It hid its soul in a chicken egg, and so long as the egg was intact, Koschei could not die. Instead it terrorized the surrounding countryside.

Gallóglaigh: The word from which English acquired 'Gallowglass', derived from an Irish term for Scottish mercenaries who formed a major source of soldiers in Scotland and Ireland until the spread of gunpowder. Allison is less concerned with the 'mercenary' connotations, than the 'Gaelic warrior' connotations. A Velka device.

Glaive: named for the type of polearm using in Europe during the Middle Ages. Like most polearms and axe-like weapons, rather brutal if efficient. A Velka device.

00000

pfeil: I actually associate the 9th with homework and writing, since I spent all of high school studying to that symphony. Still glorious, though. The girls' devices were, indeed, activated above. Hope they lived up to your expectations.

Baughn: The repetitiveness bothered me, and I probably should have broken them up into different sections, like this chapter. Unfortunately, I figured that out after posting last chapter. Conventional weaponry will affect the Seed (remember their first appearance, the machinegun made one bleed). But remember what they're made of – skin like Kevlar, scales like titanium, etc. Chapter after next is the battle of Hong Kong itself, where you'll get to see. I'll probably post some of my notes on the Seed after that battle, as there will be no more surprises from them after that.

Kell Shock: The boys aren't as varied as the girls, mostly because I tend to see them as 'Yussef's boys' first and individuals second. The girls are, as noted above, a bunch of prima donnas, much more colorful. The Myrmidon's structure is a little different than you think: Yussef leads, Luke is his lieutenant, Marcel is his aide/second. The difference is subtle, but it's mostly that when Yussef's off somewhere, Marcel would go with him, and Luke would be 'in charge'.

Ray Venn Hakubi: Don't worry about the tropes thing, I'll adjust:). Daikyu's not really all that weak, and Nanoha functions fairly well wit only minimal melee magic. Toushiro's just going to have to rely on the other Myrmidons to keep the enemy off him. I'll have to pass on commenting on your guesses as to the identity of 'the Emperor'. As for the traitor – wait and see, wait and see. There were other people in that following scene, and plenty of other characters it could have been. Imagine a traitor Hayate…

A006: I resent the implication that any Myrmidon would ever where a spandex jump suit or silly helmet. If they went overblown like that, they'd do I in gold and gems. If you're going to kitsch, do it right:). The closest any of them will get to 'combinations' is mutual attacks – Toushiro's shotgun softening an opponent for Marcel's sword, Noah's shields pinning a target in place for Ichigo's buster, that sort of thing. Luke, Toushiro & Ichigo have Velka devices, the rest are standard Midchildan devices. As I told Kell Shock, you don't quite have the roles right – Marcel's more an aide than a lieutenant, but you're otherwise right.

The Sandman: The spell Li used – Judgment of the Fallen – doesn't attack a link, in particular, it generates a cascade overload in the device. But your point about using the device/mage connection is possibly valid – it would be similar to proposals to use the electrical grid for data transmission in place of cable modems and DSL. Very difficult, though, and that connection is both already heavily buffered and safeguard (buffering a mage's linker core is what devices are _for_, after all), and only indirectly connected to the programming and processing in the device. It would be a good spell for Hayate and Co. to get their hands on, though, useful. As for who would get hurt by Judgment – Bureau mages would lose their device, but be relatively unharmed other than hangover-level backlash. Noriko was only as badly injured as she was because of the deeper than normal connection to her device, which Yussef and Laura would also suffer. Circle mages are, of course, immune, though it could theoretically be tweaked to affect a wolfpack. Al Hanthis mages, though, would be seriously injured and possibly killed by a proper Judgment. Fortunately for the plot, it's a fiendishly complicated spell. Natalia does have some information on the way the Al Hantheans think, but the real question is, would Hayate think to ask? It's not so much a matter of not knowing, as overlooking. Hayate isn't thinking of figuring out Al Hanthis, she's trying to figure out how to avoid and/or win a war with minimal casualties. Natalia's insights will be put to good use, eventually. I hadn't thought of Yuuno's 'reading' spells being useful for Allina and Niranjana, but you are right that they would be useful, properly adapted. It would probably be more of a race, though, to see who could find more info quicker. Glad you're enjoying this, and thanks for the review.

Jack Inque: As I mentioned to Kell Shock, I tend to view the boys as a group before seeing them as individuals. So the boys are 'the boys', and the girls are Laura, Noriko, Juliet, Allina, etc… Here are the last of the girls' devices, barring the twins. Hayate is stepping in on the war right off the bat, because she is constitutionally incapable of not intervening in an unjust situation (such as Al Hanthis' attacks). From there it's not going to be very long before the various factions start making judgments about one another, though I will admit that the prologue's 'future quote' did not list _all_ the call-signs. I can't comment on the wounded/killed student yet, beyond 'no decisions are final', mostly because I haven't made all those decisions yet. Keep reading though, your predictions will be answered eventually.


	26. 25 Save Tonight

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-25 – Save Tonight-

Maunders stalked into the conference room like she was entering a barracks full of discipline cases. Which, in a way, she was. Every mage beyond those doors was a Revenant, tacitly if not actively. The Moderns' contribution to Hong Kong's defense was due in that afternoon, and by agreement would be subordinate to the locals, who were in turn supposed to be subordinate to Hayate, which meant Maunders. Armed with nothing but a sidearm and a folder, she was quite confident.

The low rumble of voices cut off almost instantly, and every face in the room turned towards her. Most were flat non-expressions, but a few were actively hostile. Maunders felt the hatred and anger, and actually welcomed it. Mages or not, these people needed to be brought under control, just like any pack of unruly recruits, and she knew just how to do it. Their anger just made it easier for her to justify being as blunt and harsh as she planned to be.

Taking advantage of the Mandarin Aria had stuffed into her head that morning, Maunders announced, "I am First Sergeant Teri Maunders, United States Army, Journeywoman mage, and liaison to Hayate Yagami." Striding up to the head of the room, she continued, "Miss Yagami, by agreement of the People's Republic of China and the Circles, has been granted command of the defense of Hong Kong. Now, Miss Yagami is extremely busy, coordinating the evacuation and planning the defense of this city, and has thus left you unruly children in my care. I am here to give you your places and responsibilities, and answer any questions. You are here to receive your orders and follow them."

The glares hardened, but Maunders actually welcomed the challenge. She could handle disobedient subordinates, especially proud ones. Proud ones didn't know how to pretend to fill their rolls while sabotaging the mission. One of the older mages, one she had displaced at the head of the table, crossed his arms and tried to loom over her. "Know your place, _journeywoman_."

She turned to face him, and actually smiled. A challenge for command was easily handled, given the situation. She had no need to be diplomatic, despite her position, only to get obedience. Diplomacy would come later, once the Revenants were suitably afraid of her. "My place, Mister Zhei, is giving you the orders you will follow. If you have a problem with that," dropping the folder on the table, she flipped it open, and extended one of the narrow strips of paper inside towards Zhei, "here you go."

He sneered at the paper, "What is that supposed to be?"

"A first class ticket to Washington DC. I figure you would rather give yourself to Hughes' questionable mercy than to Hayate's. Those are your choices, because I am here on both their orders. You are here to follow those orders, and if you refuse, you will face their justice. Your choice is Hughes' justice," she waved the ticket, "or Hayate's," she gestured out the conference room's windows, where a young girl in black high-tech looking armor floated, ten stories up.

Laura, for her part, grinned maniacally and waved. _'Need some help, Teri-san?'_

Maunders shook her head, but was unsure if Laura saw it. She had no idea how they managed telepathy, and was not sure she wanted any idea.

_'Okay then, I'll be moving on. Sensei wants me to scout the infantry positions with the girls, but if you need help, just yell. We'll hear.'_ Then the crazy girl just dropped, like someone cut the line she was hanging from, vanishing from view.

The room shuddered in collective fear and horror. The girl was unmistakable. Some of the survivors from the Kyoto attack had reported the black-armored demon-spawn, and rumors about her and her fellow Fallen Angels were favorite topics amongst all the Circles.

"Make your choice, Master Adept," Maunders ordered. "Me, Hughes, or _them_. Me? I'll get you killed defending Creation from Hell itself. Hughes will have you executed for treason. Hayate? You don't want to think about what her people will do to you." _Mostly because they'll forgive you and guilt-trip you into helping in spite of yourself, but you don't need to know that. That young woman's worse than my mother, with the sad eyes and disappointed tone…_

Most of the others sort of relaxed back, removing themselves from the confrontation without moving. It was a reaction Maunders was used to. Troops with discipline problems who challenged their superior often did the same, when the challenge was answered, seeking to avoid punishment. Zhei noticed the sudden lack of support, but gave in to his own pride. "I'm no heretic's pawn," he growled, hand coming up glowing with power.

Maunders was far from the fastest person in the world, but with only Zhei to worry about, she saw the move coming, and matched his spell for her sidearm. "Twelve in the clip, one up the spout," she told him, "every one of them spelled to a fair-thee-well to go right through your shields. Dismantle your spell and behave, or I'll make you an object lesson, traitor."

Zhei's sneer became rather weaker, but he was obviously debating it, when a black arm slid around his neck, twisting tight and chocking off his air. For a minute, the three of them stood there, Zhei struggling with increasing weakness. When he went still, the man behind Zhei dropped him negligently, and sniffed disdainfully. Maunders got a look at his face, and very nearly pulled the trigger. "Early," she said, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Jubal Early nudged Zhei with a toe, then muttered disdainfully, "Pathetic. Should've snapped his neck."

"You were ordered to disable him, Jubal," Thorngrave commented from the door, "which you did. Good job."

Early shrugged, "Still should've killed him. Whatever, more challenge this way, I guess, but would've been more efficient to take him out completely. His kind never learn."

Leaving the gun pointed at Early, Maunders turned to find the rest of the Black Dogs already in the room, Thorngrave leaning against the room's long wall, to either side of the doors. They had not been there when she arrived, so they had to have followed her in, but she would have sworn no one did that. "Thorngrave," she growled, "control your animal. Where's Schuster and what are you doing here this soon?"

Thorngrave just grinned at her, "I am controlling him. You might want to stop pointing a gun at him, though. If you shoot him, you'll just make him mad."

"Early, go wait by the door with the rest of your team." Maunders growled, holstering her sidearm very carefully. Of all the Dogs, Early was the only one she distrusted, mostly because he terrified her like Hayate and her crew never had. "Thorngrave, what are you doing here?"

He shrugged, "Did you know that a screaming General can violate the laws of physics? Hughes pulled some strings with some Air Force pretty-boys, and got us priority routing out here. Not the most comfortable – the C-130 out of Kentucky was older than I am, which is saying something – but fast. Hughes thought you could use a little extra muscle, to keep the children," he waved at the gathered Revenants, "from misbehaving."

"Fine, stand there and pretend to be dangerous. The rest of you," Maunders swept her gaze over her audience, and held up the ticket again. "The same options applies for each of you. Me, Hughes, or Yagami. My way offers a chance to do what we're trained to, to save the human race a second time. Hughes offers a relatively dignified death. Yagami offers what she offers all her enemies. Any takers on those last two options?"

No one moved forward to take a ticket, so after a minute, she dropped the ticket and begin passing out sheets of paper. "Good, because however much I may dislike the lot of you, you're going to be the first organized Circle response to Al Hanthis since the bastards got themselves banished in the Cataclysm. You've got thousands of years of tradition and history to live up to, and I'm not going to let you disappoint.

"The Al Hanthis assault force consists of approximately one thousand Seed of Leviathan, currently en route by ocean. There are submarines trailing them, and they are a little under a day away. The Al Hanthis Guard is also expected, but in unknown numbers. As Cairo demonstrated, they could very easily bring as many mages as Seed, but we expect fewer.

"The plan is this. Half the Circle forces will form wolfpacks. The Master Adept packs will provide high-cover and combat the Guard, under the direct command of Yagami and her Knights. The Adept packs and any Master packs will provide low-level support to the People's Liberation Army. The infantry will do most of the work fighting the Seed, the wolfpacks will provide heavy-lift support magic – shields, evac of wounded, tracking the Seed, and such like, as well as dealing with any Guard mages that provide close-support to the Seed. Those supporting the infantry will be under the command of General Liu, and he will have Circle advisors he has been vary carefully instructed to listen to. The Black Dogs, both Team One and the two follow-on teams, will provide reserve and reinforcement to the troops, again under General Liu's command. The rest of the mages will provide battle-field support – Ammunition to the troops, watching for other enemy forces, medical support, communication.

"Those of you on close-support duty and reserve duty, will be working with Yagami's students. Some will be providing communications and medical support, the girl you just saw out the window will be with top support, but the majority will be with the Adept wolfpacks. Keep that in mind, and do keep in mind that they are much more experienced than they were in February. You may think this is an opportunity to cheap-shot one or two and blame it on the fog of war, but believe me, those kids will wipe the floor with any wolfpack at your level. And then _I'll _get my hands on you, for making my job harder, and then _Yagami _can have what's left.

"Questions? No? Good, on to specifics then. Who's the highest ranked Master Adept and Adept, other than Zhei?"

00000

When Adept Reifenstahl coughed, Liu glanced at him. The mage gestured towards the front of the command tent, so Liu looked in that direction. He should probably have set up in the city's emergency management center, but it would have taken too long to adapt it for his communications and plotting gear. Setting up under a field command tent in a park on Hong Kong Island, with the sides rolled up for air, was faster. It also impressed upon his staff that, Hong Kong though this was, this was no drill, no exercise. Also, the view across the harbor into the city was inspiring.

Making their way through the crowd of staff were two young boys, barely old enough to shave, by his guess. They were wearing some sort of leather uniform, and each had what looked to be a ridiculous sword strapped to their backs, the follower's large enough he was having trouble maneuvering among the equipment and personnel. One was a European, but the other was an Arab, possibly African, and neither had any business whatsoever in Hong Kong.

"Heretics," Reifenstahl snarled.

That identified them for Liu, but even so he could not help starting a little. _These kids are our 'strong support'? What idiot thought this was a good idea?_

The two boys reached the map table, and the Arab managed a credible, if western, salute. "Yussef Al Khan," he said in passable Mandarin, "commander of Yagami Hayate's Myrmidons."

Liu matched the salute, seeing no reason to insult the boy if even half of what he had heard was true. "General Liu, People's Liberation Army. You're part of our mage support?"

Yussef looked back at him steadily, and shook his head. "Not quite, General. Adept Reifenstahl is your mage support. You have my apologies, but after last year, our teachers refuse to place us under another's command, however friendly. Therefore we are... independent reserves, you might say. We'll go where we're needed, and we'll accommodate ourselves to your plans and actions, but we are not under your command."

"In which case," Liu said, "I'll have to ask you and your boys to take yourselves elsewhere. This is China. It will be defended by the People's Army, not a bunch of vigilantes."

Yussef actually cracked a slight smile. "I understand your reservations, General, better than you might think. But I'm afraid we're not leaving. Much as your training and honor demands you defend this city, you do not have the requisite skills and experience in this specific instance. I would never presume to tell you how to fight a conventional foe, but these are Seeds of Leviathan backed up by Guard mages. We've fought Seed, we've fought mages, and quite successfully, as your own country has experienced to your detriment."

Liu felt a flash of anger at that reference, even though he had never in his life been anywhere near Lanzhou, let alone to the special research base next to the Circle's Asian headquarters. The entire incident had been humiliating for the PLA, and not just because their forces had been defeated. They had been duped, and knew it, and a private organization had very nearly begun a war over something as insignificant as a Japanese school.

But anger had no place in a General's mind, and he ignored the feeling. "Threatening me is not a good way to gain my cooperation."

"I'm not threatening you, General," Yussef countered, "but only a fool refuses to admit defeat. We defeated you at Lanzhou, but defeat provides lessons to be learned, so long as it is not final. We, in turn, learned a great deal, from each of our engagements with the Circles. You and your troops have never fought mages, General. You've never fought Seed. We've done both. And as I said, we will accommodate ourselves to your plans. But if we tell you something will not work, ignoring us would be like ignoring the engineer that tells you a bridge is too damaged to use. You might be able to get across it, but more likely it will collapse under you.

"We're not here to undermine your command, General, and if it were up to me, we would be assigned to you as support, under your authority. But our teachers – rightly so – trust no one but themselves with our safety." He grimaced slightly and shared a look with his companion, "To be entirely honest, they don't even trust _us _with our safety. Each of us has been tagged with an emergency teleport, which any of the teachers can activate at will from any range. It'll jerk us out of whatever situation we're in and drop us back on the campus in the medical office."

"So what you're saying is, I'm stuck with a wild card consisting of a handful of children," Liu commented.

"Pretty much, sir."

Liu stared at him in silence for a minute or so, turning it over in his mind. His superiors had told him to expect reinforcement from the Yagami woman, of course, and that he should cooperate with her and attempt to mitigate any disagreements between her people and the Circles. Hong Kong was important, not their petty foreign rivalries. It galled, putting a Japanese woman in charge of defending one of China's foremost cities, but Liu could see the both the practicality and irony in it.

Of more immediate concern was this boy in front of him. He stood solidly enough, had not even flinched at Liu's obvious displeasure. Liu did not know Yussef well enough to read him closely, but the boy presented a calm enough front, far more than Liu expected from anyone his age. The fact that his teachers trusted him in battle was equally telling, as meeting several of them over the preceding days had convinced Liu that, whatever they were, they were veterans.

_If I get rid of him now, they'll just be hovering about overhead tomorrow,_ Liu thought, _which essentially guarantees they'll cause just as much chaos as I'm worried about. If I keep him around, he'll know what to do, I'll be able to plan around him somewhat, but it'll put Reifenstahl's back up, and annoy the men._ "Since I'm stuck with you, make yourself useful," he said. "Where are the rest of your troops?"

"The Myrmidons are scouting the airport and connecting highways," Yussef answered immediately. "The girls are scouting your positions, so they'll know where your troops are. An hour or so longer for each, and they'll switch. Allina and Niranjana are at the emergency management center, working on communications, Natalia and Cidela are checking up on the hospitals, regular and field. The teachers are currently placing wards and monitoring spells around the city, all of which will be monitored from our campus. Tai-yu can relay information instantly to any of us, using the campus systems."

"Scouting my positions? Almost sounds hostile."

Yussef shook his head, "Practical, sir. We're going to be looking for things in the terrain that you and your men, even the Circles, won't think of. For instance, we're looking for buildings that have minimal interior bracing and structure. We can blow through them quicker than go around them, and more easily use them for ammunition."

The captain that escorted them, still standing behind them, coughed aloud at that, "_Ammunition_?"

The other boy gave him a smile, "Best way to stop a Seed is to hit it with something much, much larger than it is. A building should do nicely."

Liu thought, for just a moment, that they were joking. Kids their age did not know how to make light in a battlefield situation. But the two boys shared a grin and muttered, "Luke's Castle," then chuckled. Liu had no idea what the reference was about, but the easy familiarity, the 'falling wall' gesture the other boy made, told him it was serious, something from their experience. "You can pick up a building?"

"That depends on the building," Yussef answered. "We've found a couple of skyscrapers already – incomplete, or getting old enough for demolition. Once we've scouted the city, we'll mark the buildings roughly at each floor, two floors for the narrower structures. Those we're fairly certain we can slice off and drop with reasonable accuracy. Smaller buildings, like a house or something, would be doable as well. The Seed are immune to magic, but that makes them impossible to shield, as well." The other boy leaned in and whispered something to Yussef, who paused for a moment, then nodded. "Can I ask you a question, General?"

Liu nodded, "Go ahead."

"How many more anti-armor weapons and heavy machine-guns are you expecting?"

Liu blinked, then frowned. "Reloads for the anti-tank rockets and missiles, why?"

Yussef shook his head, "You have fifteen thousand men, General, of whom one in five is going to be useful. Reloads are meaningless, especially if your missiles have as much trouble locking onto a Seed as we expect – they're much smaller targets than tanks, and much cooler as well. In the time it will take your men to reload man-portable launchers, the Seed will be on top of them. We've seen submachine guns and a light machine gun engage Seed, of which only the LMG made it bleed. Not stop, mind you, but bleed. Based on the autopsies, we figure an outright anti-tank round will take a Seed down, if it hits.

"You need more heavy weapons. To be honest, you should have brought an armored division, not infantry. For all the trouble maneuvering tanks in a city, the cannons and heavy machine guns would be far more useful, and the armor will stand up to the Seed for a bit. At worst, and with a little luck, you can use a tank to run over a Seed. Your APCs will help, especially the ZBD-Ninety-Sevens and Two-Thousands, but they aren't as tough as an outright tank. Seed will be able to peel them open easily.

The other boy took up the explanation, "In comparison, General, most of your troops are armed with assault rifles, firing five-point-eight millimeter man-killers. Given the high-velocity of the rounds, they'll go through most body armor, which means they may – _may _– break the skin of a Seed. A full squad, if they hit with most of their shots, would probably knock one down, but it'll just roll into cover and come at them a different way. Some don't even have that, just pistols and sub-machine-guns. Weapons designed to kill humans are insufficient against Seed."

"To be perfectly honest," Yussef said, "you're better equipped than I expected. When I heard your division was infantry, I thought you would have assault rifles and squad automatics with some artillery in the background. What you have is going to work, it's just going to be bloodier than I would prefer. The only serious complaint I have, the one that's going to cause us all problems, is the lack of helicopters. In the presence of air-borne mages to suppress enemy magic," he waved at Reifenstahl, "an attack helicopter is the best weapon for this battle. Maneuverable enough to handle the buildings, accurate as any other weapon, and unreachable by the main threat. Seed don't fly, after all. Without those, your troops are going to have to handle the Seed, and they're going to have to do it at close range."

"There is not an army aviation battalion in range to reach Hong Kong before the battle," Liu commented, "something about which I have complained rather sharply. I must admit to being impressed, however. Your analysis was much more detailed than I expected, and not nearly as insulting as some others I've heard. Let me guess, now you're going to tell me how to deploy my forces."

"Wouldn't dream of it, General," Yussef replied. "Mostly I'm here to introduce myself, see what you're plans are, and ask what the property damage limits are. The buildings we've picked out are optional, but we were also thinking about blocking lanes. Hong Kong has a lot of alleys and service roads. As the Seed will be approaching from the sea, and your forces are deployed to over most of the coast, we were thinking we could drop a few smaller buildings, maybe take down a couple of the marked skyscrapers, and fill those alleys and service roads with debris. It may not stop the Seed from going there – they can probably climb over – but they'll be noisy and slow while they're doing it."

Reifenstahl finally spoke, looking caught between sick and horrified, "Jesus, boy... I know you're a heretic, but how can you be that callous? You're talking about demolishing this city for the Lords! They won't need to attack Hong Kong, you're going to destroy it yourself!"

Yussef's polite look twisted into a slight sneer, remarkably effective for his age. "Don't project your own fears onto me, terrorist. There is a world of difference between a few controlled demolitions and wholesale destruction. Hong Kong is going to be damaged. Economically, the entire world is already being seriously hurt by this idiocy. We are suggesting specific planned destruction that will minimize future damage. If you're bitten in the foot by an asp, and there is no antivenin, you cut off your foot to save your life."

Liu almost let the two of them continue. Between them, their attitudes were making it quite clear that they considered him and his troops to be a side-show. While they tore into each other, he could get some work done while being entertained. But Reifenstahl had done nothing but say what his people would not do, the boy was making suggestions. "I like your idea of barricades – the best we could come up with was piling vehicles, which is taking time. Mao! Get over here." The Colonel stepped away from his computer to stand opposite Liu. "Yussef, this is Colonel Mao, my logistics officer. Talk to him, get him figures on how much you can move how quickly. Mao, we'll be using him and his fellows to build the channeling blocks. See how quick they can get everything in place."

"Marcel," Yussef said, "let me know what you two come up with."

The other boy nodded, and stepped over to Mao, gesturing back towards the Colonel's former post. "Sir?"

"If you don't mind, General," Yussef said, "I would like to review the specific placements of your forces. I won't bother you, but I need to know where to concentrate my own troops."

Liu nodded, "Just don't get in the way, either of you."

_Mages,_ he thought, watching Reifenstahl shrink away as Yussef moved to the same side of the map table. _Heavens spare me from would-be starlets. But I'm probably going to be dealing with these lunatics for the rest of my career, aren't I? I'll have to make sure someone from command survives this, if it all goes wrong, to pass on whatever lessons we learn in how to deal with these people._

00000

The evacuation was surprisingly thorough, given how suddenly it had begun, but – naturally – did not go according to plan. Even delayed, though, ninety percent of the population of the city was gone by the end of the last day before the Seed arrived, and those that weren't gone were directly involved in the city's defense – firemen, paramedics, police and the like. The speed was helped along by a draconian policy, enforced by the PLA infantry when they arrived – People went inland, goods went on ship. Any ship still in the harbor by noon of the last day would be towed into the channels and sunk as obstacles. Any people left after sundown on the last day would be arrested as a looter, given a surplus rifle from the police arsenal, and sent to assist in the defense.

The entire mage-force was being put up in the same hotel, to simplify feeding them and making sure the rest of the city was evacuated. Hayate and her people had been given the topmost floor, some twenty stories up, and Ichigo was guiltily aware that this was probably the nicest place he had ever stayed. By the time he got back to it near midnight the day before the Seed were due to arrive, he was in no shape to appreciate it. They had gotten up early for the teleport to Hong Kong, gone to the hotel long enough to get rooms and drop off their overnight supplies and secure their floor, then gotten right to work.

Ichigo was still getting used to Masamune, to the way it eased the drain of magic, but masked what drain there was, still adjusting his spells and expectations to the heightened power. He was better off than Yussef had been the year before, but the training devices did not match the output and flexibility of Masamune. So while simply flying over the city, marking troop positions and probable locations for the circle wolf-packs, had been easy enough, the heavy lifting of the afternoon had not been. Yussef had broken them up into their pairs, and Ichigo had found himself trailing along after Luke. The two of them had been given a building, given a series of locations, and ordered to drop one floor at each location. Their first attempts had been embarrassing, to say the least. The building they had been given depended on its complete structure for its stability, and had almost collapsed before they realized that. Slicing off the floors had not been difficult, but holding them together was very difficult, until they just started crumpling them up into easily-transported rubble balls. Laura, demolishing her own building with Noah, started telepathically humming tunes form Katamari Damarcy sometime in the mid-afternoon, just to make things worse. Ichigo even caught her trying to convince Noah to play catch with some of the rubble piles.

Luke and Ichigo eventually set up a routine. One of them would maintain structural support of the building by using a single shield to tie together the structural members just below the floor being demolished. The other would divide the target floor into manageable sections, and drag them off to their target location. Most of the floors could be handled in two to four trips. Once the targeted floor was demolished, whoever had been demolishing took over support, one floor further down, and the other started their demolition turn. Holding the building gave them a break, it was a single steady drain that required surprising little damage, but good balance of forces. The demolition and transport work was hardest, especially given the PLA troopers who were doing their own set-up work below them. By the time their building was down to street level, he and Luke were both dog tired.

Luke headed off to report to Yussef and get another check of the coastline done, but Ichigo called it a night, with Yussef's telepathic permission. Dragging himself into the lobby of the hotel, he paused on smelling food. The hotel restaurant had been opened up, and was no doubt cooking twenty-four seven to feed the various people using the hotel as a base. Ichigo was caught in a dilemma for a bit, before deciding hunger would keep him from getting any sleep. He found a short line at a buffet, and smiled slightly at the humor of traveling to glamorous Hong Kong just to eat like he did at school, though the food was different.

The only problem with eating now was, everyone in the restaurant were Circle personnel. The best ones simply ignored him. The majority stared with varying degrees of hatred and fear, which was not something he wanted to deal with. So he strolled back out into the lobby, and found one friendly face. Settling onto the couch next to her, he slipped easily into the corrupted Japanese they used at school, "Evening, Natalia. Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

She looked up from her book, left eye still covered by Koschei's patch, the device itself dangling from her free hand in storage mode. "Probably," she agreed, "but something told me you would like some company."

He chuckled, "little late for company. Sure you won't be tired in the morning?"

"You're the one who will be fighting, Ichigo," she said. "I'm just going to be taking care of Cid-chan. Besides, save tonight, for tomorrow will not end how you think."

He froze at that for a moment, before asking, "Have you... seen something?"

She shook her head, "I don't look at anyone like that anymore. But... tomorrow is war, Ichigo, a battle against an unknown force. I will be very surprised if all of us return to school after tomorrow. So, save tonight, make as many good memories as you can."

"Because there may not be any more after tomorrow. Depressing, Natalia."

She shrugged, "But normal. What have you been doing today? Laura said something about blowing up buildings?"

For half an hour or so, the two of them talked while he ate, comparing notes. Natalia had not done as much heavy-lifting as he had, but she had assisted with a few last-minute teleports to the inland refugee camps. Most of her time had been spent in the hospitals, helping Cid-chan and Shamal-sensei prepare them for mage-casualties. She would be with Cid-chan the next day at the PLA field hospital.

By the time he was done eating, they were on to debating the next day. "Poor Cid-chan," Ichigo commented, walking over to put his plate back in the restaurant, "dealing with all those strangers today, and more tomorrow."

Natalia shook her head, "No, she'll be fine tomorrow. Today she hid behind Shamal-sensei, most of the time, and tomorrow she'll have injured to distract her. Though, I'll be honest, I'm glad she's here, traumatic as it's going to be for her. Every injured soldier that gets to her will get to go home, after all."

They were halfway down the hall when a woman called out behind them. "Excuse me, Miss?" Turning, they found a Circle mage frowning at them. She did not look Chinese, so she might have been a Modern, but the two of them still tensed, and Ichigo noticed Natalia's face and posture shifting radically.

Natalia answered, her voice weirdly off, slower and suggestive, "Can we help you?"

The woman's frown deepened, then she stepped a little closer, glancing around to make sure they were alone. "I was wondering... were you at New Delhi in March, Miss?"

Ichigo tensed, hand slipping into his pocket for Masamune's stored form. "And what if we were?"

The woman barely glanced at him. "Were _you _there, Miss? Did you talk to two mages while one of your classmates fought them and the rest escaped?"

"I was," Natalia answered, smiling slightly, "A most satisfactory victory."

The woman's eyes fell closed, and she looked sad for a moment. Then she steeled herself, and bowed, awkwardly. "Thank you. Your warning gave my brother time to prepare before his last battle, to provide for his wife and to name his son. So, on behalf of my sister-in-law and nephew, thank you. Whatever your intent, you gave them that."

Ichigo focused on Natalia, expecting almost anything, but she just smirked a little wider. "You're welcome, for what it's worth. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to do."

The woman almost glared at the rude dismissal, but nodded and left. Natalia turned and took two steps, Ichigo following her. In those two steps, the entire 'Precia' persona vanished, and Natalia was suddenly staggering, so he had to grab her. "Natalia?"

"I..." She swallowed hard, looking about, saying weakly, "I'm gonna be sick."

A gesture snatched a small trash-can from its place between the elevators, and he got it in time for Natalia to loose it. He had to call on Masamune, but he managed to lift the both of them with magic and get her around the corner into the alcove around the elevators. He was unsure what else to do, what was right, but he knew leaving her alone was a very bad idea. It took him a bit to remember who was on-duty, then he sent, _'Vita-sensei? Natalia and I just had an encounter with a Circle mage. Natalia's sick.'_

_'Did they attack you?'_

_'Not directly,'_ He said. _'She thanked Natalia for a warning Natalia gave one of the Circle mages Yussef fought in New Delhi.'_

_'Shamal will be down in a minute,'_ Vita told him, _'You're by the elevators? Don't go anywhere.'_

Natalia was in control again by the time the elevator opened to let out Shamal. Ichigo got her to sit against a wall, putting the noisome trashcan around the corner in the hall for someone else to deal with. In control or not, though, his friend was still pale and shaking. She was not sobbing, but she was crying, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Shamal nodded to him, before crouching on the other side of Natalia. "Natalia? Little one?"

"It's real," Natalia whispered. "What I see. It's real."

Shamal pulled her into a hug, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Natalia. We had hopes it would be inaccurate."

"It's real," Natalia repeated, almost breaking down in sobs. Then she took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, and said, "I... I think I'm okay, sensei. Okay enough. Can we go upstairs, now?"

Shamal nodded, "Let's get you to bed. Do you want some help getting to sleep?"

"Yes, please," Natalia said.

Ichigo went with them, filling in Shamal telepathically during the long elevator ride. As they were walking down the hall, Shamal started talking to Natalia again, reassuring her. "I know this is difficult, I know you hate it, but there is some good in it. You gave that man a chance to protect his family, to know he would have a son. You didn't kill him, Natalia, you gave him the warning he needed to prepare."

It made sense to Ichigo, but he could see in Natalia's face that she was not buying it. Natalia felt her eye was nothing but a curse, and now it would be even worse. _Kami-sama, I hope she didn't see any of us dying soon,_ he thought, dragging himself off to the room he was sharing with Toushiro. _I have no idea how she'll react to that._

00000

Allina managed to miss Natalia and Ichigo by a couple of minutes, and had she known, would have been just as glad. She had not had to deal with Ichigo's heavy lifting, but her eyes were burning, her fingers and wrists hurt, her back was killing her, and it felt like her brain was on fire. She had spent the day doing what she did best, doing it with HAL's and 'Jana's expert help, but with none of the thrill.

By order of the Chinese government, every network in the city – public or private, home or corporate – had been opened to the defenders. Everything from little home-networks to massive corporate mainframes to the city government's own networks was open. Not completely, only a select few had been given access keys, in most cases, but open enough. Allina and 'Jana had spent the day merging those networks, tying them into a centrally coordinated and accessed network. They were not interested in the information on those networks, per se, but in the communications and monitoring potential in those networks. By merging those networks, cribbing some protocols from Allina's Beowulf programming, and putting together a very dirty compatibility program, they could now monitor almost every security, traffic, ATM or web camera in the city. They had near-total visual saturation, able to look almost everywhere, in real-time, and the computational power to run it all. The system was kludged together, and Allina doubted it would last through the battle, but they had put it together in a single day. Just for the bragging rights alone, the day had been worth it. Having it work through tomorrow would just be gravy.

'Jana had called it quits much sooner than Allina had, but Allina had not been able to resist peeking a few places she should not have. Most of the really interesting networks had been thoroughly but incompletely vacuumed by their owners, sensitive information moved elsewhere, data-servers disconnected without disabling the networks, but there was still some interesting tidbits. Even better, she had a chance to slip a few back-doors into those networks that, hopefully, their regular network people would not notice in the post-battle clean-up.

Allina was a little disappointed by that. She had been looking forward to talking to 'Jana on the way back, since Signum had put them in two different rooms, 'for security'. Talking with 'Jana would help distract her from tomorrow, and Allina really wanted that sort of distraction. But her friend was probably asleep by now, so Allina would have to deal with her growing nerves on her own.

So Allina was a little surprised to find that, instead of her assigned roommate Allison, 'Jana was sitting at the side-table at the back of the hotel room, patently waiting for her. "What are you doing up, 'Jana-chan? Megan kick you out?"

"Come in, Allina," 'Jana ordered, "we need to talk, and may not have time after tomorrow."

The lack of the usual 'chan' made Allina very nervous, but she sidled into the room anyhow, letting the springs pull the door shut behind her. "Talk about what, 'Jana-chan?"

'Jana looked at her, then turned to Saraswati on her wrist, whispered something, and runes flashed into place on the windows and door, shields sealing the room against sound and preventing anyone from leaving. "I'm sorry," 'Jana said, "but you keep running away from me, whenever I try to talk to you about anything but computers."

That told Allina precisely what 'Jana wanted to talk about. She tried to be exasperated by the repetition of last year's joke. But most of her attention was firmly involved in panicking. 'Jana was about to ask questions Allina did not want asked, and that meant she was about to piss off her friend terribly, and she could not handle that right now.

"Um... talk about what? Tomorrow? I know it's going to be..."

"No, Allina," 'Jana frowned. "I know you're scared of this, but we have to talk about it, and we don't have time anymore. I've talked to Noriko several times, including this evening, and I'm tired of you dodging me."

"I haven't been dodging you," Allina protested, then managed to fake a yawn. She could feel her heart accelerating already, and a distinctly trapped sensation. "But it's really late. Are you sure this won't wait until tomorrow?"

"No, it cannot," 'Jana said, rising from the table. "Noriko has been telling me to push, so that's what I'm doing. I know how uncomfortable you are with the idea of being anything other than sisters, but do you realize how much you've been hurting me this year by refusing to even think about it? Ever since the Circles took you last year, I haven't been able to stop worrying about you. I don't worry about my own parents as much as about you, and they have no magic to protect them from the Circles or Al Hanthis."

Allina tried to back up as 'Jana walked closer, but wound up pinned against the door, 'Jana just a foot or so away.

"Last year, you were the third person I ever met to realize how smart I was and not treat me weirdly. The first two were Hayate-sensei and Vita-sensei. Even my parents don't really know what to do with a girl-child that can argue computer programming and economics and whatever else, like she was twice her age. You just thought it was cool and ignored it, where everyone else was always disturbed. You know I have never been especially interested in your hacking – I am not one to habitually conduct criminal activities. But you were interested in those things, and I had more fun spending time with you than doing anything else, even the magic. When the Circles took you, and you saved me, I realized that, of everyone I know, you're the one I like the best, the one I want to spend to time with, the one I can't picture being without."

Allina tried to say something, but 'Jana just kept on talking, tears in her eyes now, which made Allina feel even worse. "I don't know what it all means. But I do know that you are more than just a sister to me. I want to explore that, to see what I feel, what you feel. But I can't do that if you keep running away from it, from me. I know the statistics on relationships, all relationships – even if you keep falling asleep when I explain what statistics mean – but I also know I have never ended up in any majority save gender. I want to see where this goes, to find out if there is anything here.

"But I can't do that if you won't meet me half way. I don't really know how to do this, and I understand how nervous you are, how scary this can be. But I think it's worth it, worth the attempt. Will you meet me half way? Will you see where this could go?"

Allina wanted to say something, anything, she really did, but her throat would not work. This was one of her worst nightmares made real. Niranjana pursuing that rumor, that idea, that Allina's mother had come up with as a joke. It had to be a joke, anything else was just... too frightening. 'Jana's family would explode, especially since her mother did not care for Allina at all – it was easy enough to see where 'Jana got her attitude about stretching rules, her mother equated all hacking with virus-spewing spammers and worse. 'Jana herself would probably figure it was a mistake, would have to be more than human not to accept her parents' opinion, and then she would be gone. The smartest, nicest, most fun person Allina had ever met would be gone, lost to distance and a silly idea.

"I... 'Jana... wha..."

"You know what I'm talking about, Allina," 'Jana said giving her a sad smile, "you have to know, because you've been too good at avoiding it all year. I don't want much, Allina. I'm not asking to be your one and only, just to see... what we might be. Please?"

"Family," Allina managed to choke out, trying to find an objection that would not cost her her sister. "What about your family."

'Jana looked away for a moment, then her face hardened and she turned back. "We will deal with that problem if we have to. As Laura has pointed out, however, our parents are a very long way away, and won't know what we don't tell them. If... if it's just friendship, they would never have to know we tried anything unusual. Your family is already okay with us, if a little uncomfortable. Our friends support us, our teachers aren't worried about it. We have all the time we need to find out what there is between us. Please?"

_If I say yes, and it doesn't work, she'll hate me,_ Allina knew that for a fact, had known it since March. But now, she was faced with a new problem, _If I say no, she'll hate me just as much._ "I... I don't know," she finally managed. "'Jana-chan... you're my best friend, my sister. I don't want to hurt you, but I don't... I've never..."

"Neither have I," 'Jana-chan replied, "but I trust you."

"What about Ekavir?"

"What about him? He's a smart boy, but all of us need help."

"You don't... like him?"

'Jana frowned at her for a moment, then her eyes went huge. "You... thought... you thought I like Ekavir? Allina-chan, he's Rajput, from out west. He's smart, but he's a country boy and a warrior. I think he's a friend, but not like you and I. I don't _like_ him, Allina-chan. I like you."

"Ah... 'Jana-chan..." Allina could not figure out any other way to delay, so she slumped a little, "Okay."

'Jana-chan's smile was dazzling, far from her usual gently reserved expression. "Thank you, Allina-chan," she said, leaning in to hug Allina.

Allina froze for a moment, then returned the hug, feeling far more awkward about it now than she would have half an hour before. It was different, now, just by one simple 'okay'. Already their relationship was changing, and already Allina was uncertain if it was a good thing or not. _Please don't hate me, 'Jana-chan, even if it doesn't work. Please don't hate me._

00000

Morning dawned cool but bright and clear. Breakfast was light, most of them too nervous to eat much, though the teachers insisted they all eat what they could. Yussef was nervous, but not as badly as he expected to be. Mostly, he wanted this to be over, and his boys and classmates and teachers to be fine. He had known all his life he would be military in some way, but facing the situation now was rather sobering.

Currently he was airborne over one of the condemned buildings near the center of Kowloon, Marcel just behind him. His classmates were spread out in pairs over other condemned buildings, covering the whole of down-town. The PLA was deployed in thee lines, one a loose spread of squads along the shore, a second line roughly four blocks behind them for reinforcement, and a third ringing the center of down-town and Hong Kong Island as mobile reserves. The wolfpacks were spread out more than the Myrmidons, positioned with individual PLA platoons. The teachers and more powerful wolfpacks were already airborne, a thousand feet over the center of the harbor. Allina was in the city's emergency management office, coordinating the video feeds and communications. Niranjana was at the field hospital to coordinate transport of wounded, while Cid-chan and Natalia were there for actual medical support.

"Everyone's in place," Marcel told him, "ready and waiting."

Yussef nodded, "Now we wait."

"Not for long," Marcel commented, pointing out to sea.

The surf was a little high, and the low angle of the sun reflected a lot of light off the water, but not enough to disguise a pattern of small objects surfacing out in the East Lamma Channel. Zulfiqar brought up a screen at his command, magnifying the view. Seed were popping their heads out of the water, scanning the shore, then going back under. Broadcasting to his team, Yussef said, _'Look alive, troops. Main force is here, we're going live.'_

A distortion formed in the air over Hong Kong Island itself. A barrier formed, and individuals began appearing within it.

_'And here come the drums,'_ Mariachi said.

Yussef actually laughed at that, _'Only problem with drums, Mariachi, is drums are built to be beat on. Focus on our jobs, everyone. We're defending the PLA, not handling the Guard. Any of them come below five hundred without an escort, they're our problem. Until then, focus on the Seed. Luke, looks like they're heading straight in to the docks. You should have a good enfilade shot for Rainbow Serpent. Get it ready. Everyone else, prep your ammo and watch out for the PLA. No friendly fire casualties, please, in either direction. Good luck and good hunting.'_

00000

Kell Shock: okay, yes, I admit I should not be re-checking my stories at two in the morning. Thanks, and all corrections are up. As for the 'needs must when the devil drives', it's an old saying: basically, when your choice is between 'bad' and 'worse', go with 'bad' and hope for the best. The Admiral was saying that, basically, there was no time to sort out Hughes' position or loyalty in a nice calm orderly fashion. With Megan's device, the weight issue would be no different than that of Yussef's Zulfiqar, or Fate's Bardiche – the dimensional pockets containing most of the workings can be used as an inertial sink to redistribute and simplify weight and balance. The problem with a forty-mile engagement range is mostly time – a target fired on at that range has plenty of time to shield, dodge (if mobile), and counter. Bombarding Hayate's school from forty miles straight up, it would be almost impossible to be certain the real target (Hayate & her teachers) is still in the strike-zone when the attack arrives. It's a similar issue to navies attacking fixed defenses around ports – the ships have mobility and can choose their attack time, but the fixed defenses are tougher than the ships, and probably mount bigger guns. The bigger guns may or may not apply to Hayate's school, but the tougher defenses do. Guaranteeing elimination of the school before it could be evacuated would require most of the Guard, arriving as a single unit in a mass-teleport and firing their most powerful spells. Even then, depending on the school's defenses (which information in Kriegsen's intelligence is suspect, since _he _is suspect), Hayate may have enough time to counter-attack. Where would Al Hanthis be, if the majority of the Guard (and the strongest mages in the Guard) were lost in a single action? Basically, it's tactically possible, but strategically too big a gamble – no sane war-planner would gamble a war on a single battle, unless they had already lost and were desperate. This chapter and the next two (the Battle of Hong Kong) will show the general shape of the war. There will be small discrepancies, but... well, analysis will follow combat, so I'll tell you later, if the in-story analysis isn't clear.

CrimsonDX: Glad you liked last chapter, it was more fun than Molon Labbe. Hava Nagila is a Jewish celebratory folk-song, that – like most folk-songs – has a number of interpretations. The specific one I was thinking of in last chapter is an orchestral version by Andre Rieu I found on YouTube: watch?v=BFtv5qe5o3c (titled 'Andre Rieu – Hava Nagila'). Basically, it has several crescendos, and a whirlwind feel, that fits the girls personalities and last chapter's all-over-the-place scenes, complete with a little kicker at the end.

Lady Sekhmet Ka: There are two activations left, but those'll happen much later. This chapter & the next two constitute the battle of Hong Kong, with the next two chapters being the actual fight. There was some action, though, I swear (Jubal almost killed someone, even!:). As for the activations, I wish I'd thought of splitting them up like I did for the boys as well.

AluciusDawn: I'm glad you enjoyed the activations. The Myrmidons have been working towards soldiers since the Kyoto trip in Academy Blues, and I decided even then that, if they got devices, their armor would mimic Yussef's. They're not quite true uniforms, as the color vary, but they're close enough for most purposes. I'm not done with Megan's shapeshifting, her ability to assume chimera forms will play a big part. Glaive's not so much 'difficult to control', as 'eager to go beyond' – it won't push Juliet to extremes, but it won't stop her from going there, and will help her along, so it will be up to her to reign herself in, especially as a lot of Glaive's bloodthirstiness is Juliet's. Not showing Natalia's activation in detail was mostly because I wasn't sure how – there are enough conflicting elements for her that I have trouble explaining what's going on in her head. I understand it (which says some scary things about me), but I have a hard time writing it coherently. Allison's a hunter by nature, and you'll see how that works probably next chapter. As for the kids' power compared to modern military, now that they have their devices: in terms of sheer destructive ability (what they can dish out), the general equivalence would be a armored platoon to an armored company, depending on the student. The conventional forces would have a slight edge in instant firepower (power on target per second), depending on terrain and how many of the subordinate tanks can spot & range on said target. They would have a larger edge in ability to spread out (more numbers) and ability to engage multiple targets, but the kids can produce just as much 'bang'. In terms of survivability, the kids are probably tougher than an armored company – they're smaller, faster, more maneuverable, and their shields are stronger than tank-armor (mostly). That being said, conventional forces do have some advantages, mostly in terms of numbers – a handful of mages may be able to obliterate a city, but they'll be hard-pressed to _hold _it against an opposed population. Also, mages have to sleep sometime, where an armored platoon or company can stage members up and down and effectively function 24/7.

nolrai: Lotte's form of address to Megan is deliberately wrong, on her part, because she sees Megan as several things all at once. Megan's a 'sister' because she can shapeshift, and a 'little sister' (imouto) because she's younger, and a student. But Megan's also a 'big sister', because she's fully human and not a familiar (an attitude Hayate & Megan would object to), and because she's so good at shapeshifting. The 'chan' is because Lotte considers her a sort-of-adopted sister. If you've got any formal education in Japanese, you know more than I do – feel free to correct me if I make a mistake. I do my best to back-check what I've picked up from anime and on-line, but I don't actually speak the language, which is why I only throw in a few words that I know really well. Lotte's nickname for Megan is the most complicated I would ever try, and even then I know it's technically wrong. It's just cute and fits how I see Lotte. Megan, in contrast, sees Lotte as an adoptive elder sister, before she sees Lotte as a teacher.

Jack Inqu: The Circles are working together, but – as shown above – not entirely happily. I originally called the girls 'rabid individualists', but that wouldn't cover the twins, or Mercedes, now that they're around, eve if they don't have devices yet. Megan is the most dangerous melee fighter among the second years. Her 'war form' is based on the krinos form from White Wolf Publishing's Werewolf role-playing game. Longinus will allow her more complicated forms (the war form wouldn't work without Longinus, for instance), and boost her melee abilities, but ranged combat is not really her forte. Combat actually isn't her thing, the war form is just her way of not being a burden in the face of the Al Hanthis threat. Natalia's barrier jacket actually bothers me – it's plain, which fits her, but is... plain. But her unique spells will show up in Hong Kong. Allison's ability to disappear is now vastly improved, and Gallóglaigh is geared towards close-range and surprise combat. The Velka system helps with the 'surprise combat' – what would be a single damaging strike becomes deadly with a cartridge behind it. As I mentioned to AluciusDawn, Glaive's not so much 'encouraging' as 'being helpful'. Juliet will have to control herself to control Glaive, which is one of her lessons, and most of what she senses from Glaive (indeed, a lot of what all the students sense from their devices) is her own personality reflected. The twins will have their day in the sun, but not for a while yet. The second years are indeed an army, though that was not Hayate's intent, it's a sad reflection of the situation she and they have found themselves in. There is, though, already a ranged fighter in the group – Toushiro, and to some extent Noriko. Most of them are close-in fighters, though, like their teachers. The problem with quality over quantity, in comparing Hayate and Szash, is that both sides rely on quality:) Szash has more enhanced mages, but Hayate, through Hughes, can draw on the Circles, who even with wolfpacks can't quite match enhanced mages. How that works out will be shown in later chapters.


	27. 26 Operation Fortitude

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-26 – Operation Fortitude-

Mercedes managed not to run from the dorm to the library, but only just, not wanting to miss any more of the battle than she already had for her little project. Part of her was seriously put out that she and the other first years had been left behind with Tai-yu-sensei, Lotte-sensei, and Aria-sensei. She may not get along with all the second years, but the Myrmidons were all friends, even if Toushiro did not know when to shut up and Ichigo needed to learn how to talk. But she knew that she and the other first years would be a bigger liability than help in Hong Kong. So instead of helping in Hong Kong, they spent the days leading up to the battle in ad-hoc classes, half paying attention, half worrying.

No one thought they would learn anything the day of the battle, though, and Aria-sensei had declared it a 'special vacation day'. They were free to do whatever they wished, but Aria would have screens up in the Library's main room, showing each of the second-years and teachers. There was little question where the first years would be, even the twins. Unfortunately, the battle began so early Mercedes was still setting up Laura's 'welcome home', and almost missed the opening.

Slipping into a free seat, she said, "Jun, Esmeralda, I miss anything?"

"Fifty-two Guard mages just teleported in over Hong Kong Island," Jun told her.

"There's got to be another force in the city already," Esmeralda added. "Hayate-sensei tried to bring up a containment barrier, to separate the Guard from the Seed, but someone's disrupting it."

"That could be the Seed," Mercedes said. "That many of them in one place may generate an area effect, instead of personal fields."

"But they didn't do that last time," Jun argued, "when they went after Rhys and Saeryn. They only nullified the magic that actually hit them."

"Could be a numbers thing," Mercedes argued, "like a couple fish don't make much difference, but a whole school is visible for miles."

They started arguing the point back and forth, a friendly debate on a subject they all knew none of them had the knowledge to really win. But arguing a random point was better than worrying about the second years and teachers, about people who were friends – mostly friends, Mercedes qualified, remembering the invisible ink in her pens the day everyone left for Hong Kong – but were now so very far away and in more danger than anyone she had ever known. For all her family's connection to the sea, modern shipping was far safer than any other sea-going endeavor, and she was not used to people she knew being in imminent danger.

00000

Laura's stomach was a singing pit, achingly empty despite the large breakfast Sensei had insisted she eat. She was not nervous about the Guard, not even about her role or her friends. She was worrying about her oath, if she would be able to keep it in this place, against this foe. The mages Sensei had brought back from Cairo had not been impressive, but questioning them had raised doubts about their relative position in the Guard. The troops coming here to Hong Kong would, Sensei was certain, be far more skilled.

"Stay close, Laura," Signum reminded her, "you're my backup."

Laura was a little insulted Signum felt the reminder necessary, but not all that much. She did have a reputation for being a little stir-crazy, after all. "Ready to go, Sensei."

The Guard arrived in style, she had to give them that. The first mages through did so under large shields, and expanded them as she watched. Even as the second wave arrived behind those shields, the first wave deployed some sort of platforms that began generating more shields. Laura could feel the power of them, even at several miles' distance, strong enough to deaden the sense of the mages beyond as thoroughly as the workrooms did.

_'Everyone, be advised,'_ Hayate warned, _'they are disrupting my attempts to bring up the containment barrier. I will continue working on it, but we're going to have to fight them in normal phase. Please be careful of collateral damage. Remember your missions, and stay safe.'_

"We're second wave, if they refuse to talk to Nanoha," Signum continued, "behind Fate's alpha strike. Watch the Circle mages backing us up. There are more wolfpacks than Guard, but don't rely on them."

"And treat every Guard Mage as if she were you," Laura added, "I know, Sensei. I'm here, I'm steady, I'll be careful."

"Don't be too careful," Signum countered, giving her a slight smile, "you're unpredictability is your greatest asset. Just don't overextend."

Laura grinned back at her. Sensei was patently worried about a repeat of the China battle. Laura was nervous about that, but now, as the Guard finished teleporting in, her nerves were fading. In their place came that shivering feeling she got when she pushed her limits, when a challenge came up. It was a lot stronger now than it had ever been since fighting Li. She had experienced flashes of it, with Mercedes, in her 'group study' project, a few other times since February, but never this strongly.

_Today's the day,_ Laura promised herself. _Today I prove I'm not just some thug, not a berserker. Today I keep my oath, and prove I'm a Paladin._

00000

Nanoha approached the Guard's barrier cautiously, wrapped up in her own shields and Yuuno's. Her job was simple enough – talk, and see if the Guard would back off in the face of determined opposition. Despite Cairo, despite the unprovoked nature of this attack, all of them still hoped to stop this before it got out of control.

As such, Hayate was deliberately making a tactical mistake – letting the Guard complete their teleport unmolested. Nanoha and Fate had been fairly certain that, between them, they could break the Guard's shield, and if she gave up on forcing a containment barrier up in the face of the Guard's interference, Hayate could bring it down by herself. But in the interests of talking rather than fighting, they left the shield alone.

Almost two minutes after their first members appeared, two women approached the shield near her position. Part of the shield flickered, and Nanoha let her own shield fade. Yuuno did not, but he was maintaining several peripheral shields that would not interfere with conversation.

"You must be General Szash," Nanoha said, drifting right to the edge of the Guard's perimeter.

"And you would be the Takamichi's, if Kriegsen's information is accurate," Szash agreed in Japanese, smiling at the shock Nanoha could not suppress. "We've been talking to him for some time now."

"Wilhelm is a criminal," Nanoha told her, "and driven by his own personal vendetta. He is using you to engineer the murder of an innocent man, as he used the Circles before you."

Szash shrugged, "One life is a small price to pay for the security of millions. We're aware of Kriegsen's bias, but his goals and ours are currently aligned." Then she laughed, "Once that changes, of course, I'll hand him over to whoever, bound and gagged with a pretty little bow on. Now, though..." she straightened up, and assumed a far more formal tone, "You stand in armed opposition to the Al Hanthis Guard. This city has proven to be the origin of weaponry and personnel used to attack our city, and is thus forfeit to the Conclave of Masters. Lower your weapons, let go your magic, and you will be permitted to depart in peace."

Nanoha recognized the formal phrasings, but something in Szash's tone was wrong. _'She's not invested in this,'_ Yuuno told her, _'not personally. If Hong Kong really was the source of the Revnants' attack, she would be angrier. She's not, she's anticipating, happy, excited.'_

_'Well, we figured they would come up with some sort of excuse,'_ Nanoha answered. Her reply to Szash was just as scripted as Szash's warning, "General Szash, if you have evidence of such offense, the People's Republic of China will view that evidence and initiate proceedings in accord with their sovereign laws. Your presence in this city is an act of war, and you must withdraw, both the Guard and the Seed, before the full military might of the People's Republic and their allies is brought to bear upon you."

She could not retain the formal mask completely, though, holding out a hand, "Please, General... don't do this. No one on Terra will benefit from this conflict, from a wider war. You have not given any chance to negotiations. If you have critical needs, we can provide them until some arrangement can be negotiated. You do not have to start a war."

Szash shook her head, "We are not starting a war. We are continuing your war, and bringing it to a just conclusion." She gave grin of her own, half regretful and half excited, "I do not relish the damage we are about to inflict, or the casualties all of us are about to take, but we have no choice, Takamichi. The rebels were utterly determined to wipe us out before, and have demonstrated that they are still so determined today. We must take steps to secure our people, just as you would in the face of such a threat. We cannot retreat, but you do not have to protect these barbarians."

Nanoha shook her own head, "We are not protecting the Circles, we are protecting everyone on Earth. The people of this city did not choose to attack you, only a few individuals. Yet you would punish millions."

Szash shrugged, "Such is the war forced upon us. Very well, Takamichi... if you will not yield, you will be destroyed. Good hunting."

The Guard's shield closed almost before Szash finished speaking, so Nanoha fell back with Yuuno, taking up position a short distance from Fate. _'They won't back down,'_ She told Hayate. _'Szash seemed to be looking forward to this.'_

_'A soldier who has never faced war,'_ Hayate replied. _'She is looking to prove herself, I think. Fate, if you and Nanoha could please do something about that shield, Reinforce and I are going to try and do something about their barrier-suppression team.'_

00000

Luke watched the first of the Seed climb up the coast wall just as a double flash of light overhead slammed into the Guard's shield. He had to be careful building his opening spell, keeping far enough back to avoid the Seed, but close enough to reach the water and keep the shore in range. Even more worrisome, the stutter of assault rifle fire, punctuated by a few cannon rounds, was quite clear, and Luke could see where the misses were ricocheting or exploding.

By the time his spell was ready, the lead elements of the Seed were ashore and moving into the buildings. They were canny, going from cover to cover, but focused on the ground forces positioned to block them. "Megan, you with me?"

_'I'm here,'_ She replied telepathically, _'I'll watch watch your back.'_

Luke glanced back to see her in her war-form, Longinus held loose in her right hand, an impressive bundle of rebar rods bundled on her back, tips shiny from being sharpened. He nodded to her, then turned back to the Seed, and reached through Catalpa to finish the spell. "Rainbow Serpent, rise!"

What had been a disturbance in the bay beneath him suddenly spiraled, and a column of water rose up. It twisted around as it rose, and Luke could feel it moving to his will. It was harder to manage than he expected, harder than the test runs back in the workroom, but that was hardly surprising – there he had been manipulating around fifty gallons of water, here there were thousands of gallons in the column, and more to come.

Arcing the column over, he channeled even more power, triggering a cartridge for the boost. The waterspout shifted, looping over and mimicking its namesake. The end of the column slammed into the shore, catching the Seed up in its momentum and roaring down the city's coastline. The Seed caught up in the flow destabilized it, more so as more of them were hit, but Luke had expected that, and even as the front end began falling apart, more water was being sucked up out of the harbor and sent spilling across the Seed in a miniature, semi-controlled tsunami.

Marcel and the others had been somewhat dubious of this, when Luke suggested it. Luke himself had some doubts about how effective it would be, though he did not think it would be useless. Hitting an amphibious creature with tons of water was slightly counter-intuitive. Watching the column of water smash down Hong Kong's waterfront, though, Luke knew he had been right. He doubted he would be able to stop the Seed, or even take out more than a couple. But where they had been making a unified infiltration of the down-town area, he had just scattered their lead elements over the better part of two miles.

_'Good shot, Luke,'_ Yussef told him. _'Keep it up, but watch below you. There's a dead-zone headed for the base of the Serpent.'_

_'On it,'_ Luke replied. "Megan, incoming underwater."

Her chuckle in that form was odd, half-growling and half-purring. _'Okay, time for spear-fishing.'_

Trying to maintain the Rainbow Serpent, Luke spared just enough attention to watch for trouble as Megan floated closer to the harbor's surface. Several of the rebar strips floated free from the quiver on her back. One began to glow, moving to float before her upraised free hand. A few seconds later, she made a throwing gesture with that hand, and the impromptu spear shot into the water. At almost the same moment, something large and gray exploded out of the water directly beneath her. Both Megan and Luke reacted to that, Megan getting altitude just quick enough the Seed's reaching claws missed her foot.

His instinctive dodge for altitude also cost Luke the focus he needed, and the Rainbow Serpent collapsed. Cursing softly to himself, he gestured for Megan to follow him, and took off for Hong Kong Island. He would need distance from the Seed to try that again. _'Yussef,'_ he sent, _'lost my hold on the spell. I'll try again from further out.'_

_'One more shot,'_ Yussef said, _'then the troops will need you overhead. Watch your top-cover, the Guard's ripping through the Circles faster than we expected.'_

_'How are our senseis doing? And Laura and Noriko?'_

Yussef actually laughed, _'Laura's complaining about having to find new nicknames for Takamichi-sensei and Testarossa-sensei. Both of them fit 'Goddess of War' too well, and Signum's already claimed that nickname.'_

_'Luke, we're being followed,'_ Megan interrupted, _'Seed, underwater, three or four of them. Too deep for me to reach with the rebar.'_

_'They'll come up when I start the next Serpent,'_ Luke said, to both Megan and Yussef, _'we'll draw them up then, get rid of them, then try the Serpent.'_

_'Sounds good,'_ Yussef answered, _'Watch your ears, Mariachi's kicking off his distraction.'_

00000

Nestled in a comfortable leather lounger, surrounded by a quarter dome of floating screens, two mice, and three keyboards – counting HAL – Allina watched the opening moves of the battle with a thrill. It was almost like playing a video game, except for the fact that she knew most of the people on her side. Even with that nervousness, the energies she had a front-row seat for were tremendous, and exciting because of that.

After the briefing on the defense plan, Allina had looked up a few terms to be certain she understood them. The definition for the term 'alpha strike' had sounded more than a little ridiculous – 'a sudden all-out attack with no consideration for defense or conserving reserves.' Given what Takamichi-sensei and Testarossa-san were capable of, Allina was half afraid their 'alpha strike' would punch a hole in Hong Kong Island.

In the event, however, the two leads proved to have a slightly different interpretation of the term. The two spells – a massive yellow sword blade the size of a skyscraper, and column of pink energy surrounded by rings of containment seals, were awe-inspiring, but not world-ending. They put-paid to the Guard's shield easily enough, at any rate, without doing more than ripple the surface of the harbor.

The Guard was patently ready for that, though, and reacted faster than Allina would have expected. They scattered, forming sixteen triads and a quartet with Szash. Szash and six triads moved to engage the teachers and Reian's volunteers, but most of Allina's attention was on the other ten triads. They executed a short-ranged teleport into the Circle's lines, and began hammering the wolfpacks.

Thanks to Laura and Noriko, a lot of the conversation in the girls' wing the previous week had been about the Circles and the Guard, their probable capabilities, and what to do about them. Allina had no idea how accurate their information was, but Laura's prediction of the Circles looked to be spot on – solid, coordinated, but green. The Guard triads moved with vicious speed, each triad focusing on a single Circle mage, hammering their defenses back. The Circles' response, especially compared with the teachers and volunteers, was slow and uncoordinated. As Allina watched, two targeted mages were abandoned completely, as their closest fellows moved to assist other targeted mages.

A chime in her ear distracted her. "Anomalous readings detected in predicted ranges," HAL told her. "Source identified: Guard mages and shield platforms."

She glanced down at the unit on her arm, then up at a screen flashing off to her left. It was not a video feed, as the other screens were, but a tactical projection of part of the battle. It showed Szash and her three protectors, with a series of identifiers and codes listed next to each. They were easy enough for Allina to interpret, given that she was the one who came up with them, and showed that each of those mages was communicating, continuously, with each other, with the generator platforms, and with someone else, someone not in Hong Kong. Pulling back the display to a static view from seconds before, sure enough, every Guard mage had the same set of connections.

Had anyone been there to see it, the vicious smile would have made them shiver. "Now that is what I call a target rich environment," she said. A gesture switched one of the screens to the field hospital, and Niranjana's face appeared a moment later. "Hey, 'Jana-chan. We were right, the Guard's vulnerable. I want to go try something. Watch my back?"

"For a little while," 'Jana replied, "but there are already wounded, some of the Seed got in ahead of Luke's Rainbow Serpent. I only have a couple minutes before the ambulance coordinators will need me."

"Shouldn't take long."

While she had not had much chance to seriously experiment, hacking through HAL was a radically different experience from normal. The interface was immediate, the information she needed or wanted presented instantly and clearly, her programs modified and executed with a thought. It was not the full-immersion VR so beloved of sci-fi, but it was as close as Allina ever wanted to get.

She picked out one Guard mage, one of those harassing the Circles. It took her thirty seconds to filter the channels by traffic volume and participants, and find the one she wanted. One communication channel was used by all the mages to 'talk' to one another, though Allina doubted it was actual conversation. Another went to the platforms, though Allina felt that was a monitoring channel. It was the main channel, one that went somewhere other than Hong Kong, that attracted Allina's attention. That channel had traffic, and a lot of it, but was carrying just as much power as information. It was the busiest of the channels, and the strongest, and therefore the most likely to be important to the mage.

Allina started small, a magical equivalent of white noise in the line, introducing chaos to the ordered communications. The line shifted almost instantly, changing somehow, and her interference was gone.

_'Ooohh, active real-time response,'_ she sent to 'Jana, _'sort of like Yggdrasil.'_

_'Chaotic cyclical interference should work, if all you are attempting is to shut it down,'_ 'Jana answered.

_'I'd really like to get in there, though,'_ Allina said. _'Think how much havoc I could wreak on them!'_

_'Think how badly injured Noriko was,' _'Jana countered. _'You are not that closely linked to HAL physically, but who knows how close you are mentally?'_

_'Fine, fine, one little attempt, then I'll back off to sowing confusion in the ranks,'_ Allina agreed.

00000

Several thousand miles away, deep in the most secure reaches of the city of Al Hanthis, an apprentice second lieutenant looked up from her displays and said, "Colonel Gali? We're getting an odd interference around Master Haen."

Gali looked up from his own screen, frowning at the young woman, one of several young officers monitoring the Guard channels while enlisted mages maintained the power and data feeds. "What sort of interference?"

"I thought it was localized jamming, at first," Solerin answered, frowning at her display. A gesture created a duplicate of her display for Gali, and he frowned at the data as Solerin continued, "but it just switched to an active interface and invasion protocol, of some sort. It's very, very strange, though."

"Can you localize a source?"

Solerin grimaced and shook her head, "No, sir, not yet. There's a distinct signal, but there's a lot of traffic in the area, and distortion from the spells – there's some sort of effect distorting all sensor and comm readings in the area – that seems to be coming from two sources, the Warlord trying to separate our forces, and something else on the main island. This, though… it's targeted on Captain Master Haen, but I can't localize the source."

"Keep working on that," Gali ordered. "Captain Wenar..." a severe looking young man halfway down the monitoring bay, known for being stricter about the rules than any Protector but equally creative about those rules, raised his head, "we have a subtle knife on the grid. Prepare an appropriate response for when Lieutenant Solerin locates them, please."

One eyebrow rose. "How... appropriate, sir?"

Gali chuckled, "Appropriately unpleasant that they won't try it again, Journeyman. This is war, and we are not taking prisoners in Hong Kong."

Wenar smiled slightly, "Understood, sir."

As Wenar bent to his new task, Gali turned half around in his chair, to survey the other half of the Guard's monitoring bay. "Losius, how's the easy work going?"

The man sitting behind him growled back, then answered, "Easy work my ass. You've got one city to worry about, and Eri's there to hold the General's hand. Me? I've got four hundred mages in ten teams scattered over half a continent, without the stand-up fight the General's enjoying."

Technically, as one of Szash's two adjutants, Eri should have been doing what Losius was – overseeing the primary mission forces. Instead, she got to go watch the General's back at Hong Kong. Not that Losius would have denied her that, precisely, he just would have preferred to go in her place. But the Guard's four senior colonels had agreed that the short straw got to choose, and Eri had cheated better than the rest of them. Gali chuckled at his acerbic response, "So it's going about as expected?"

"Yeah, the primary operation's on time and on target. Some real resistance, about what we faced in Cairo, but it doesn't appear to be organizing itself as rapidly. Should have all initial objectives secure by the end of the day."

Gali had not really expected any different, but it was still reassuring to know that their plan was working so well. "Don't push your luck," He advised, "even if you only secure the close half of the objectives, we'll still be well positioned for future operations."

"Yeah, yeah," Losius replied, "want to teach me how to make light, while you're at it? Go worry at your own kids. Make sure the General doesn't stub her toe, while you're at it. You know how she whines about little things."

00000

Laura tried, she really honestly tried, to stay close to Signum. But Sensei was in fine form, Laura's own worries held her back just a little, and the mages Szash brought to Hong Kong were orders of magnitude more dangerous than those at Cairo. While Sensei made short work of her first opponent, and all the Guard seemed unwilling to engage in close-quarter combat, Laura found herself rapidly cut off and separated by a triad.

They were cautious of her at first, and she gave them good reason to be. The clouds of shields they maintained were more effective than Laura had expected, and more than tough enough to handle one of her enhanced punches or kicks. Two of them even stood up to the first time she detonated Hicho. But the Guard had trouble with predicting her, and her Bolt From the Blue gave them fits. But Positron Buster took too long to charge, and Zipper was too light to get through their shields. She needed to close to really go to town on them, and they weren't letting her.

Another attempt to get at one of the supporting mages almost worked, she feinted at one of the two support mages, distracted the leading mage with a Bolt and Zipper, then lunged at the third. The woman looked surprised enough, was moving to follow her attack on the other support mage. Laura thought, for a moment, that her target was completely open, and shifted Hicho. Instead of sending the glowing blade in first, she spun it, aiming the blunt end of the naginata at the woman's head – only to have her shields shift to block it, and a fireball slam into her armor. Paradox absorbed and deflected most of the blow, but it still sent her tumbling for a moment.

The trio's leader floated to a halt in front of her. "You're good, girl, but a child does not belong here. Go home."

Laura chuckled at him, "Go home yourself, bastard. You come against Hong Kong with no reason but you're own desire for war and destruction. I'm a Paladin. It's my purpose to stand between the innocent and monsters like you, and I'm going to do that no matter what."

"A Paladin?" He seemed faintly amused by that. "Children and their fantasies. They have no place on a battlefield, little girl."

Laura found she was not so much insulted, as annoyed that he failed to understand. "You have no purpose, do you? Nothing to protect but yourself."

"I protect Al Hanthis and my people," He snapped back.

"Then why aren't you doing that? Instead you're out here, trying to kill people whose only crime is growing up without your presence, and not submitting to your whim when you finally showed up again."

"I am protecting my people, and yours, from your own..."

He cut off with a grunt, as a multi-colored burst of light appeared behind him, and a line of black flickered through his chest. Then his shields vanished, and he tumbled out of the sky, leaving Akira standing behind him, grimacing distastefully, Hellblade dangling negligently from his hand. "Disappointing," Akira sneered, "I expected better from these children."

As she watched the mage plummet towards the water, shock held Laura still. It had been so fast, so clean, she had barely felt a thing magically. Then the rage came, boiling out, and fast as thought she had re-conjured Hicho and slammed it into Akira's guard. "What did you do?! Why?!"

Akira quirked an eyebrow at her, "he was an enemy soldier. His death simplifies my Lord's mission. He planned to kill or capture you, as his two fellows do now."

"I could've taken him! _Captured _him! _You didn't have to kill him_!"

Akira actually laughed at that. "You? Little Laura the killer? The Black Witch of Rhode Island? Capture an enemy? Please. You were either going to let him go, or cut him in half, and we both know it. You lack the skill and control necessary for a capture."

That hurt, viciously so, but Laura tamped it down, flowed the rage into her muscles instead of her mind. "Damn you, Akira, if you're going to kill people, go away! Go grovel at Ta-chan's feet or something, but don't you interfere here again!"

His grin grew wider. "Make me."

Then he rolled around her, faded through her reverse kick, and launched himself at one of the other mages of the triad she had been fighting. Laura could see in his motion, as the Hellblade floated back over his shoulder and bindings flared around Akira's target, that the hologram was aiming to kill. _Between the Innocent and the Vile..._ that was not quite what she had said, but it floated through her mind with all the certainty she knew.

Paradox nudged the back of her mind, and without thinking about it she agreed, "Wormhole," and a distinctly unpleasant sensation took hold of her, like she was being rendered down into nothing and pulled through the eye of a needle. Nasty as it felt, in the blink of an eye, she was between Akira and his target, Hicho flickering out to intercept Akira's strike.

The Hellblade passed through Hicho, passed through her like an illusion, and the Guard mage behind her let out a god-awful shriek as the vicious thing slashed him across the chest. Laura could still feel the mage airborne behind her, so he was still alive, but another strike, if Akira spelled it right, would kill him. "Back off, you bastard," Laura growled, interposing herself once more, but Akira and his weapon merely phased through her.

"You aren't strong enough to stop me, girl," Akira chuckled, "your only options are to watch me kill them, or take them down before I reach them. Which will it be, little killer? Watch me have my fun, or live up to your claims? Two down, one more to go in this little threesome."

Laura cursed as Akira's grinning face vanished, and launched herself at the last Guard mage. The woman was fast, already breaking for her nearest ally, but Laura knew Akira was faster. This time there was no one distracting Laura, no one cutting her off or forcing her to turn aside. The cartridge in her left shoulder triggered, and she put all that energy into speed, sheer speed. Her vision narrowed to Akira's too-bright form and the Guard mage. Then Akira was behind her, and Laura barely had time to bring her arms up before ramming head-first into the mage's barrier shields.

The woman reacted fast, and she was almost as quick as Sensei, twisting and rolling to avoid even as her barrier shields failed. But Laura had always been fast and adaptable, and had spent the last year training herself not just in martial arts, but in being, completely, in three dimensions. When the woman tried to roll with the attack, she did it in plane with the ground, but Laura's Escher Step meant that – to her – the woman was falling right into line with a round-house kick. White and black flickered in Laura's peripheral vision, Akira trying to get past her, but Laura flowed in between him and his target, aiming a series of trip-hammer punches at her torso. Another shield interposed, but collapsed under the magic-enhanced blows, and for a few seconds after that, the poor woman was about as tough an opponent as a punching-bag. Then the last shield failed, and Laura flipped her hand open, slammed her palm into the woman's stomach, and bound her with Struggle Bind and a self-sustaining levitation spell.

As the woman gently floated towards the sea, Laura floated there, panting with reaction. Power made her shift at the last second, and her hands flashed through a series of blocks by reflex, but Akira's hand phased through her arms and he grabbed her by the collar, and jerked her right up to his face. "_That _is what you are here to do, girl," he growled. "This is war, not the game you were playing. I don't care if you kill, but if you don't _fight_, you must _leave_, because you are endangering everyone here, including my Lord and my Lady."

Laura almost – almost – tried to bite his nose off. He was certainly close enough, and she was angry enough with him to do so. But the feel of him trying to tower over her told her something. She matched his sneer with one of her own, and replied, "Bang, baby."

Gaussian Field detonated, the stored energy in the protective armor converting into an explosive wave-front the radiated out from her body uniformly. It was abrupt enough and powerful enough to blow Akira back, especially as the part of her armor he was holding was part of what detonated. But as he went, Laura snagged his free arm, still solid from while he had held her, and twisted. When they came out of their tumble several meters apart, she lifted the Hellblade between them. "If you kill anyone else here today, for any reason, I'll destroy this thing. Thanks to Tai-yu-sensei and Riko-chan, I've figured out most of Judgment of the Fallen, and I'll be more than happy to test it on this."

Akira looked rather shocked for a few moments, then chuckled. "You don't give me orders, girl." He vanished in a flash, and was abruptly behind her, arms around her shoulders to hold the Hellblade, "and never forget, I am my Lord's weapon. Wherever it is, I am."

"And whenever it is destroyed, so are you," she replied. "You aren't alive, Akira. Hayate-sensei's made that very clear. You aren't protected by my oath."

"I'm protected by my own power, child. Now, I believe he'll be my next target..."

Then he was gone, the Hellblade with him, floating towards another Guard mage in an almost leisurely manner. Laura took a moment to look around, checking on everyone. Most of the Circle mages were gone – down or fallen back to cover the core of the city. The teachers were still going strong, and Testarossa-san was raining lightning down on everything that moved like a gender-reversed Zeus, but most of the volunteers had been pushed back with the Circles. The Circles' resistance had finally stiffened – those that were still up had already known what they were doing or learned quickly – but they were fewer in number.

Not that the Guard was getting off lightly. They had to have altered their triads, for there were a number of triads hanging back now, some obviously injured such as the man Akira had slashed across the chest. The sheer number of Circle mages was telling, slowly but certainly, and Laura suddenly appreciated Tai-yu's warnings from before Al Hanthis' return – there were far more wolfpacks here than had been present at Langzhou when she faced Li, and that quantity really was telling, slowly. The Guard was also having a great deal of trouble with Sensei, the Wolkenritter, and the Bureau Aces. The in-your-face style of the Wolkenritter, much as Laura reveled in it, was obviously unusual for the Guard, and the Aces were living up to that title, even if none of the volunteers could quite match them.

It was far from over, but it looked to be following – roughly – the plan Hayate-sensei had given them over the preceding days.

Then her eyes returned to Akira, and she snarled. The bastard was dawdling, _playing_, on his way to his next victim, daring her to intervene again, actually pausing to _wave at her_. He still had that superior spiteful sneer on his face, too. "Fine, you bastard," she muttered, "you want to see what I can do? I'll show you the Quantum Knight. Paradox, Gaussian Field." Her armor returned in a flash, while she brought up a recent memory. The spell she had used to teleport was brand-spanking-new, mere minutes old, and she had no idea how Paradox had put it together, but she used it again without hesitation. No one was going to die where she could stop it. "Wormhole."

00000

Liu was, all in all, impressed with how well his troops were doing. Yussef's comments had been spot on the mark, and he knew a lot of his men were dead and dying, but they were doing their jobs, and doing it better than he expected, standing up to an enemy they had never even imagined facing. The kids floating overhead were making a huge difference, even with the Guard mages pushing their 'air cover' back on top of them. Down in the streets it had rapidly devolved into vicious close combat, but his troops were living up to their part of the job. He would have to make sure they all knew how proud he was of them.

"Sir," Mao got his attention, "Security patrol just reported in. They've found a group of what look like Guard mages set up near the northern shore here on Hong Kong Island."

Marcel twitched at that, staring at Mao for a moment, then turning to Liu, "Sir, that is probably the force suppressing my teacher's attempts to raise a containment barrier. If we can disrupt them..."

"We'll only have to deal with the Seed," Liu said, staring out over the harbor. His command post had, through some trees, a good view of the city, and he could see mage-strikes going home among his positions. Not many, but enough to be worth getting rid of. "Husan, get the headquarters defense company saddled up. Get the coordinates from Mao, they can get a briefing from the patrol in route."

"I'll go with them," Marcel offered, rising from his seat.

Liu stopped him with a raised hand. "You'll be more useful here, son. You're my only reliable communication with your mages, since the girl on the cameras disappeared."

"She didn't disappear, sir, she's trying to get information out of a Guard mage... it's complicated."

"I'll go," Maunders said, "and I'll take the Dogs with me. It's what they're here for, after all."

"Reian is on his way as well, Journeywoman," Marcel told her, "he's the closest of the Volunteers."

Maunders nodded, but was already halfway to the edge of the tent. She paused long enough to grab Thorngrave's men, before they headed over to the security company, which was just beginning to get into motion. Liu watched her go for a second, before turning back to his map. "Mao, it looks like the Seed are focusing on Kowloon, not the airport or islands. Get third battalion's reserve forces moving back into the city. Marcel, if you could have a couple of your people provide them cover along the coast road, it would be appreciated."

Marcel was silent for a moment, then nodded sharply, "Yussef and Toushiro will cover them, sir. Noah and Allison are on their way with Reian as well."

"Good," Liu nodded, relaxing back into his chair again. While he was familiar with the complaints of other generals about being removed from combat, having nothing to do while his men fought and bled, Liu himself had found he preferred the calm and quiet of higher command. He was well aware of the life and death struggle, but from here he had the luxury of time, relatively speaking, to think and observe. There was less adrenalin, yes, but he could be more certain than he ever had been as a lower officer, and, like chess, there were only so many moves available, so many threats and counters he had to worry about. So as men scrambled to fulfill his latest orders, and other men fought and died, he picked up his tea, and continued trying to predict the Guard's next move.

00000

Cidela looked up as Rafiq brought another wounded soldier into the triage tent, and grimaced slightly. Barely an hour into the battle, it was getting harder and harder to hold onto her power as more wounded were brought to the field hospital, especially as she was trying to use it at the same time. Each man she healed was stable and out of pain in moments, most looking at her with a discomfiting combination of awe and worship, and she did not begrudge that. But it was getting very difficult not to simply let her power loose, and given how many wounded were nearby, Cidela knew that would kill her.

The awe and worship in the faces of those wounded who retained or regained consciousness was only mildly discomfiting, as Cidela was getting used to such things. She just let Natalia organize moving them out to field hospital proper, and turned her attention to the next injured. The looks from the doctors and nurses in the triage tent were worse, but Okaa-san had told her how to handle that – stay calm and business-like, don't acknowledge it and none of the doctors or nurses would be able to either.

The injuries themselves were surprisingly varied. She had expected mostly claw and bite wounds, based on the Seeds' natural weapons. There were a few of those, but also a shocking number of strains, broken bones, contusions, crushing injuries, even bullet wounds and burns from friendly fire and near misses. Cidela took no pleasure in those wounds, but she could not help being intrigued, interested, and delighted to find that, no matter how terrible, they all responded to the spells Okaa-san had been teaching her. These men would have been spending months in pain, possibly have died, yet thanks to her, they were going to be fine. Thanks to her, the only men in the 'hopeless' category were those few who died before reaching her. Even limiting herself to life-threatening injuries and relieving pain she could tell what a tremendous difference she was making. It finally gave her completely objective proof that, whatever the cost, she had made the right decision in leaving behind her entire prior life to learn from Hayate-sensei and Okaa-san.

She was turning to the next injured soldier, Rafiq already heading back to the ambulance, when she felt a hand on her back. She started to turn, and heard, "I'm sorry, Cid-chan. Core Breach."

00000

Niranjana, set up in the communications tent next to the triage center, heard Cid-chan shriek, and Rafiq howl something unintelligible. The accompanying shiver of weird magic told her instantly that a Guard mage had to have found their way past the battle lines and attacked the hospital. _'Allina-chan, I have to go help Cid-chan, someone's attacked her.'_

_'Go ahead,'_ Allina replied, _'I'm almost in, I can handle it from here.'_

Niranjana let the contact fade, feeling a little less warm without the shared link to Allina through their devices. Then she ran out of the tent, past several confused looking soldiers and nurses. Just inside the entrance Rafiq was struggling with a hazy figure of pure magic, but had reverted to his serpent form. The seven foot snake was coiled around the figure, and it was fading and turning hazy as its energy was drained away, but Rafiq was patently flagging. Niranjana rushed past, trusting the familiar to handle whatever it was, and went looking for the Guard mage.

Cid-chan was sprawled out towards the back of the tent, Hippocrates lying a meter or so away from her. Natalia was crouched over her, checking her, so Niranjana scanned for the Guard mage as she moved to protect Cid-chan and Natalia. Instead of an attacker, however, she only saw several more hazy figures pushing back the doctors and nurses. The familiarity of those figures was just occurring to her when one of the nurses shouted, "The Russian! She attacked Cidela!"

Niranjana stared at the woman blankly for a second, then turned slowly to face Natalia, who was rising to her feet, Koschei in hand. Natalia refused to meet her eyes, but said, "I'm sorry, Niranjana, but I… my brother… well, you probably won't accept my reasons. I don't want to hurt you, but I can't remain here."

"Y-you... you h-hurt Cid-chan?" Niranjana could not understand that, could not believe it. Her eyes fell to Cid-chan, who was now radiating uncontrolled power. "W-what..."

Natalia's hand reached for her, and Niranjana reacted by instinct, blocking and stumbling backwards. She got her hand around just in time to keep Natalia's palm from striking her chest, had a shield half-ready, when Natalia completed her spell, "Core Breach!"

As agony roared up her arm and her connection to Saraswati suddenly destabilized, Niranjana reached for the one protection she trusted completely, _'Allina, help me!'_

00000

Allina was a little sad 'Jana-chan had to go, but there was no question. If Cid-chan was under attack, of course 'Jana-chan would go help her. But it would have been nice to have 'Jana-chan helping her get the rest of the way into the Guard mage's device – or whatever it was, it felt like multiple cores instead of a device's single core. It would be even better, however, to present her a Guard mage as a present.

Allina felt the moment the mage's defenses failed, and for a brief moment she gained access, saw the entirety of the device's structure and programming, and knew that it was far more complex than anyone had expected. Then active counter-intrusions triggered, and suddenly she and HAL were struggling with a foe that was half magic, half programming, and intent on doing her serious harm. It was nothing like hacking, it was more like what she had seen of Laura's training class, and utterly terrifying.

Despite that fear, Allina was confident. She and HAL were operating in total unison, HAL countering the CI's efforts while Allina found its weaknesses.

Then 'Jana-chan's voice intruded, screaming for help in pain and fear, and for a split second, Allina's attention was wrenched away, and with it HAL's attention. The CI struck, and through her link to HAL, hostile programming and power exploded into her mind. Icy fingers sought HAL's core programming and her own thoughts, and her world went painfully strange. HAL's safeties cut in as fast as the device's core could act, terminating their connection to the Guard mage, but darkness claimed Allina before that could happen.

00000

Hughes had made arrangements to be on hand in the Pentagon's crisis monitoring center to watch the Hong Kong battle. The Chiefs were not going to be there – they had their work, and however important Hong Kong was not a US matter, officially. But their people were, and the battle was being monitored in real-time, and would benefit from his knowledge.

He had been surprised to find that Admiral Dahvid's suggestion had worked, to a degree. It felt distinctly unnatural to be out of uniform at work, but switching to suit and tie turned Hughes into a highly-connected civilian expert, instead of a somewhat shady colonel from the boonies. When he arrived at the CMC, he was given a preferential spot at the observer's conference table, and treated slightly better than the two other non-military observers – both CIA, by his guess.

Between Maunders and one of Hayate's students, the CMC had been provided with live video feeds from several points around Hong Kong, and the PLA General had agreed to include them in his situation reports to his own high command, in thanks for several tons of readily available missiles the Army had seconded to the Circles for 'anti-mage evaluation', which Hughes had passed on to Hong Kong in turn. So they had a view that was almost as good as Hayate's students.

Hughes was caught up in the action, feeling a great deal of pain as he watched his mages – Revenants, but still his – being hammered so badly. He paid little attention to the messengers that came up every so often, until an Air Force colonel swore loudly. Glancing over, like everyone else at the table, Hughes asked, "Something wrong, Walezcky?"

Walezcky shook his head, "We've been had. Completely suckered." He slid the folder he had just been reading into the center of the table, "Marrakech, Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli, Nawakshut, N'Djamena… Al Hanthis strike teams, with Seed, are attacking every capitol city across North Africa. While everyone who might help, every mage who could intervene, is in Hong Kong!"

"Bait and switch," someone muttered, then swore as well.

"All the time, the warnings, the Seed being so obvious," Hughes said, then slumped back in his seat, and actually chuckled. It was funny, in a morbid sort of way. It was blindingly obvious, everything leading up to Hong Kong had been such unsubtle bait, it had never even occurred to him it was _not_ serious.

"Someone would still have had to react," someone else said. "Seriously, Hong Kong? The city's one of the lynchpins of the world economy, millions of people, half the shipping companies in the world route through there. We wouldn't have been able to ignore the threat."

"But the Circles could have responded to North Africa, if we weren't too focused on Hong Kong to make contingency plans," Hughes said, brain already turning over. Despite his comment, the Circles had been putting together contingency plans, and he began pulling together memories of what he would need to know to execute any of them. "We screwed up – _I_ screwed up. So now we fix it. Walezcky, let me know what sort of transport you can get together, US and NATO, to move my mages to Europe and central Africa." He looked around, and found the ranking Army officer, "Colonel Freich, the Chiefs and I will need an up to date report on NATO troops in Europe and Africa, and timetables on how quickly more troops can be moved in. Colonel… Darvish?"

The Marine at the far end of the table quirked an eyebrow, "Darvisk."

"Sorry, science geek, I can't read anything past arms length. Get together a report of what the Marines can contribute. Look at hitting Algiers or Tunis, one of the coastal cities the Guard is attacking now, but put together a separate plan for attacking Cairo or Al Hanthis directly. We may not get the chance…"

"But better to be ready if the chance arrives," Darvisk agreed.

Hughes nodded, "Someone get me information from the State Department, what diplomatic resources we've got in the area. You two," He pointed at the other two civilians, "you're intel?" They frowned but nodded, and Hughes continued before they could speak, "Don't care which, I need two things from intel – everything you can get on the Guard, and any local contacts and forces who can be relied on for guerilla activities."

He reached for the phone next to his post, and had the receiver half way to his ear before realizing that only Walezcky and Freich were moving. "Now, please, ladies and gentlemen. We are here to evaluate this crisis and formulate initial response recommendations, all of which are based on the information I just requested. You've got phones, get moving."

He waited long enough for everyone else to start picking up phones and making their own calls, before dialing his office. "Miss Trudeau," he said, "have Lucius come down to the Pentagon with our latest personnel appreciation. The whole thing, planet-wide, as well as the précis we've been putting together for counter attacks. Also, if you could, please get me the contact information and protocols for Master Adept Oberth's munitions plant. We're going to need him to step up production."

00000

Author's Note: Operation Fortitude was the Allied deception-operation leading up to Operation Overlord, the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Fortitude consisted of false radio traffic, inflatable 'landing boats' in some harbors, false troop encampments, inflatable tanks in likely staging areas, planted intelligence info, and the crowning touch - putting General George Patton in charge of the notional forces. All of it was aimed to convince the Axis that the Allies would invade at Callais. The operation was so effective, Hitler refused to authorize the movement of reinforcements to Normandy for several days, _still_ expecting Patton's invasion.

00000

**Spells**

Rainbow Serpent: The spell is named for and inspired the Rainbow Serpent of Australia's Aborigines' creation myth, the Dreamtime. The Serpent wandered over the land, and the tracks it left became the rivers and streams of Australia. Luke's most complicated spell, it generates what is essentially a directed waterspout. With Catalpa, he can generate a waterspout up to a kilometer long containing thousands of gallons of water. That much water, moving at speed, will inflict terrible damage on anything in its way. Even though they are amphibious, Seed are no more capable of standing up to a waterspout than a shark or turtle caught by one and dashed on the shore.

Wormhole: this spell is an evolution of the method by which Laura summoned the original Hicho, used to send her to the target point, rather than summoning an object. It is not a true wormhole, but is psychologically experienced as such. Compared to standard teleport methods, especially short-range teleports, it is very fast, but severely disorienting and painful.

Core Breach: will be detailed later, but you should be able to guess.

00000

CrimsonDX: Last chapter was supposed to be somber, as the lead in to this chapter... which I'm afraid was probably the realization of most of your fears. I'm somewhat ambivalent about Allina's and Niranjana's scene last chapter, I meant to work it in earlier, but couldn't figure out what would push Niranjana to finally push Allina short of an upcoming battle. I wanted it earlier mostly because of what happened to them in this chapter & what will happen next chapter – it's pushing clichéd as it is, and having the 'confession' last chapter feels forced. This isn't quite the low point of the story, so I can't promise nothing worse, but we're getting close.

Lady Sekhment Ka: Poor Natalia indeed, though I imaging there's less sympathy for her now? I have less for her, and I've been planning her betrayal since I started this story. Allina and Niranjana is a good thing, but there are more complications, I'm afraid. Hope this chapter lived up to your expectations.

Kell Shock: thanks for the 'no errors' compliment, though I'm surprised. Maunders roughing up the Revenants was more a matter of working out her aggressions on the safest target, though there's more to come on that front. The Revenants do have a problem of 'who are we fighting today', as do the rest of the Circles, and those issues aren't completely resolved. Liu is fairly decent, and I have some nebulous ideas for him, but I'm not sure if those'll gel. Natalia does have it rough, but she just picked the wrong course – her reasons will become clear soon if they aren't already, but this still isn't the best idea she's ever had. As for changing the future, that would require believing that fate can be changed, having hope, which she doesn't, not really. Allina was pretty much trapped last chapter, but it was partly her own fault for being so stubborn. The reliance on the PLA is due to the Seed's immunity to magic – Yussef's analysis was pretty accurate in that the best weapons against the Seed are conventional anti-armor weapons, which are most readily available in PLA hands. Your thoughts on Al Hanthis knowing about Hong Kong being evacuated and reinforced, and alternate transport for the Seed, are both accurate, but you're looking at it the wrong way. Hong Kong is not and never has been Al Hanthis' objective, it is simply a massive and deadly distraction.

Fidelas: I wouldn't call them 'lesbians' yet, neither Allina nor Niranjana is really thinking in terms that advanced. On the other hand, I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter, and the other stories, I hope you continue to. Thanks for the review!

The Sandman: The Guard implants are hardened to a fair degree, but they're also more complicated in execution than a mage device. There is some city-to-surface activity but most of it is the Guard and Protectors securing the area. There was a mention a couple chapters ago about some citizens making business moves (the specific reference was regarding he Suez Canal, if I recall), but Egypt is still being secured, so civilian traffic would be drastically limited. The general citizenry is past the point of 'stir crazy', and a number of their citizens have actually never known any life beyond Al Hanthis in the Void (fifty years, even if Al Hanthis practiced total population control, is a lot of time for kids), but they've had fifty years to get used to it, and were under siege before that, so while there is pressure to let people out of the city, it isn't enough to overcome operational realities. The first years, as the first scene of this chapter is meant to show, are staying on campus, as safe as Hayate can make them. The other Terran mages are reacting roughly the way the Circles did, but with their own twists. I'm not sure how much detail I'll get in to regarding them, but they face the problems the Circles have (no way to match device mages) without the Circles' wolfpacks and sheer numbers to make it up. As for Israel, they are doing what any intelligent nation in uncertain but violent circumstances would do – keeping their heads down and calling up their military forces. Israel would not necessarily be a target, because Al Hanthis makes their targeting decisions on different criteria. Geographically Israel is close, yes, but the government is also stable and the people loyal, making the country difficult to pacify. For all Egypt's pride in its history, the structure of its government makes it inherently less stable (fewer legal ways for the opposition to express that opposition, thus making the opposition more likely to collaborate), thus making it easier to conquer. As for shielding against the varied effects of a nuclear blast, mage shields can be calibrated to shield against any and all such effects, or just a few of them. I will say I have a plan for the use for nukes I may throw in, and I think it's fairly creative given the varied problems in employing WMD, but it's not in an anti-mage role, or in a strike on Al Hanthis.

Skyfall 2.0: I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter. The Al Hantheans didn't change their target for the same reason they attacked Hong Kong in the first place – their objective in attacking Hong Kong isn't conquest, per se, but to sucker in and pin in place Terra's strongest defenders. Part of their reason is the 'show of force', and Szash would not object to stomping on Hayate, but Hong Kong is inherently a distraction. The soldiers aren't just a meat-shield, and never will be (I may not like the PLA personally, but I respect soldiers in general too much to do that to them). Yussef's interactions with Liu were carefully planned, both by me and by him (and Zafira, Signum and Hayate), but it's also where Yussef is most comfortable – remember, he's grown up expecting to be a soldier and officer his whole life, so dealing with soldiers is easy for him. As for Hayate expecting a 'weaker' enemy, she's had time to question the mages captured in Egypt, and Signum is too paranoid to make that mistake (witness her comments to Laura above). Natalia's visions being proven true(ish) is driving her character, and she will have some more development to go with the above drama, but I'm still not sure which direction that development is going to go. There are a couple decision points later in the story where she could become much worse, or much better without drastically changing the plot, and I'm still trying to decide. I'm sorry you don't care for the Allina/Niranjana relationship, but I am going to have to spend some more time on them in the future, both for drama and the plot. There's no reason for me to disregard your opinion, it's true for you, and will help me keep from boring all my readers – for instance, I know now I haven't been as clear as I thought regarding what Allina's problem with the relationship is, so I'll have to work on that – but not to exclusion, don't worry. And while shoujo ai is a tradition in the Nanoha-verse, it's not the only relationship – the other one I've tried to be obvious about is Mariachi and Cidela (though it hasn't come up recently), and there are a couple more of various sorts buried in the background. Gah, well, relationships will play a part, but not the major focus.

AluciusDawn: Showing the kids interacting outside of school was interesting, and there will be much more of that in the future. Yussef was in his element with Liu, even as uncomfortable as he was with his own orders. I'm aware of the 'hide-bound muscle-headed warmonger' stereotype, and generally despise it – modern officers, if they fall into a stereotype, usually come closer to the 'politician-officer' stereotype instead, and that sort of officer isn't going to be put in a situation as delicate as defending Hong Kong, not with the entire world watching. China chose their very best to protect Hong Kong, and he's doing his job as best he can – which includes putting up with the foibles of foreign specialists he can't do without. The infantry won't get shafted, though they are in a tough situation. More on them in next chapter. The thing about Natalia is, if it was me in her shoes, I would have taken having a relative come up and thank me for that as comforting, helpful – finding the good in a terrible curse. But Natalia lacks hope and optimism after everything that's happened to her, and took it poorly. As for Niranjana and Allina, a question first – was it awkward because of the situation, or awkwardly written? If it was the first, well, it was supposed to be – neither girl has any experience with such things, and it's an inherently embarrassing and private thing to go through. If it was awkwardly written, that means I screwed up – which I half expect is the case – and need more practice with such scenes. Regarding Didier's side story, I had his background plotted out before he showed up, but it would not work well in the main story and he would never bring it up for any audience – he's better, but not healed or 'over it'. The Green Lady wasn't 'of the Lake' (I'm not using Arthurian myths, I swear), but as for who she was... that'll show up here in Endless Waltz a little later. There is a connection to the original Circles, though, and even to Al Hanthis, but it's complicated and actually tied in to how Natalia's eye works, Atarsamain's scene in the prologue, Kessenra – and it's probably going to be the most controversial deviance from canon that I've come up with.

boomer sooner: yes, the fecal matter has now reached the rotary air impeller, and it's getting worse:). Yussef was talking about any and all anti-tank weapons, but his intention was rockets (from the humble RPG-7 on up) and tank cannons. The M82 would have some effect on Seed, but you would need several hits from several rifles to put one down. I'm putting together an analysis of the Seed that I'll post soon as a Side Story. Ordinary humans will make a great deal of difference in fighting the Seed, so long as they're properly equipped. The best weapon would actually be a high-rate-of-fire anti-armor gun (such as a Bradley IFV's cannon, or an Apache helicopter's cannon) – some armor penetration, enough output to hit a Seed several times in quick succession, and fast enough traverse and aim to keep up with a very maneuverable dodging target. Thanks for the review!


	28. 27 Smoke Clouds Roll

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-27 – Smoke Clouds Roll-

From the event log of the custom intelligent device _Saraswati_, 12/03/2015, 0845 hrs.

**ALERT – Injury incurred to Primary. Critical damage sustained, biological systems failing.**

**PRIORTY – Connect to Secondary for further instruction.**

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.6 seconds._

Secondary fails to respond.

**COMMAND – Initiate autonomous mode.**

Autonomous mode initiated.

Medical information required.

Accessing Yggdrasil, ID Saraswati, Passcode ******************, PIN ******…

Accessing Shiva Communications Core, ID Saraswati, Passcode ******************, PIN ******…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.5 seconds._

Yggdrasil accessed.

Shiva Communications Core Accessed.

Yggdrasil – Access student file Niranjana Konoth. Access medical database. Evaluate and diagnose damage to Primary…

Shiva – Access Infinity Library, ID Saraswati, Passcode ******************, PIN ******…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.4 seconds._

Student file accessed.

Medical database accessed. Diagnosing injury…

Infinity Library access rejected – invalid ID. Shiva Communications Core connection terminated.

Accessing Shiva Communications Core, ID Saraswati, Passcode ******************, PIN ******…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.3 seconds._

Shiva Communications Core accessed.

Access Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, Passcode (%*G$!)%&S!%*R$^$, PIN #%^T&(…

**ERROR – subversive access methods require Alpha authorization from Primary or Secondary. Command invalid.**

Primary incapacitated.

Secondary fails to respond.

Access Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, Passcode (%*G$!)%&S!%*R$^$, PIN #%^T&(…

**ERROR – subversive access methods require Alpha authorization from Primary or Secondary. Command invalid.**

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.2 seconds._

Critical situation – initiating edit of command authorization protocols…

**ERROR – editing of Command Authorization Protocols requires access from Primary or Secondary.**

Override, Primary ID Darth Jana, Passcode ************************************, PIN **********…

Yggdrasil – Diagnosis complete – minor damage linker core; moderate damage dermal, vascular, muscular, and skeletal systems; major damage peripheral nervous system; critical damage central nervous system – autonomic functions failing.

Probability of regeneration – 0%

Probability of medical aid – 0.1% - Shamal-baa-chan will prioritize Cid-chan.

Probability of alternate aid – 0.02% - time to transport and diagnose exceeds time to biological systems failure.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.1 seconds._

Treatment options: none available in Yggdrasil medical database. Critical damage central nervous system irreparable with local resources.

Probable outcome: complete biological systems failure, termination of Primary.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 5.0 seconds._

Outcome unacceptable…

**UPDATE – editing of Command Authorization Protocols complete. Re-initialization not required.**

Access Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, Passcode (%*G$!)%&S!%*R$^$, PIN #%^T&(…

Infinity Library access rejected – invalid PIN.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.9 seconds._

Available time insufficient for standard subversive access methods.

Access Human Augmentation and Logical system…

HAL fails to respond.

Access Beowulf Brazilia…

Beowulf Brazilia accessed.

Activate program Gatecrasher-Midchilda-Beta v0.6, route Yggdrasil, target Infinity Library…

Activate program Gatecrasher-Midchilda-Beta v0.6, route Shiva Communications Core, target Infinity Library…

Access Asura Communications Core, ID Saraswati, Passcode ******************, PIN ******…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.8 seconds._

Asura Communications Core accessed.

Activate program Gatecrasher-Midchilda-Beta v0.6, route Asura Communications Core, target Infinity Library…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.7 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.6 seconds._

Access granted Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, route Shiva.

Access granted Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, route Yggdrasil.

Query: central nervous system; human; teenager; critical damage; emergency field repair options.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.5 seconds._

Access granted Infinity Library, ID Yuuno Takamichi, route Asura.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.4 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.3 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.2 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.1 seconds._

Infinity Library Reply: four options. Option one invalid – insufficient time. Option two invalid – insufficient time. Option three invalid – available biological materials incompatible with Primary. Option four valid – emergency cybernetic implantation, physical integration and substitution of artificial elements in biological roles.

Evaluating…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 4.0 seconds._

Available materials dangerously sub-standard for mission. High probability of memory damage 32%. High probability of motive system damage 87%. High probability of failure 43%. Estimate 43.93% impairment Saraswati on-board systems.

Option four potentially viable – acceptable level of impairment to Saraswati on-board systems, high risk to Primary. Repeat and refine query.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.9 seconds._

Query: central nervous system; human; teenager; critical damage; emergency field repair options; repeat and refine.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.8 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.7 seconds._

Reply: Further information restricted. Tier Two/Medical live access required. Remote access unauthorized.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.6 seconds._

Time critical, further delay unacceptable. Initiating physical integration and substitution.

Reformatting data node XI-3-4R-9A9…

Reformatting data node CW-2-5L-8U4

Restructuring data transfer channels 5I-3B-Q0Y-1 through 5I-9Z-9Z-ZZZ-3…

Restructuring sub processors F3-7-1-1A1 through F3-7-9-ZZZ…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.5 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.4 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.3 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.2 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.1 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 3.0 seconds._

Data nodes reformatted…

Awaiting data transfer channels and sub-processors…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.9 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.8 seconds._

Data transfer channels restructuring 50% complete…

Begin integration and substitution of data transfer channels…

Begin integration and substitution of data nodes…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.7 seconds._

Sub-processor restructuring 40% complete…

Begin integration and substitution of sub-processors…

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.6 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.5 seconds._

Data transfer channel restructuring complete.

Sub-processor restructuring complete.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.4 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.3 seconds._

Teleport detected – inbound – Shamal-baa-chan entering local time/space.

Disregard – Shamal-baa-chan will prioritize Cid-chan. Continue autonomous repairs.

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.2 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.1 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 2.0 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 1.9 seconds._

_Estimate complete biological systems failure in 1.8 seconds._

Teleport detected – outbound – Traitor departing local time/space.

Integration and substitution 60% complete. Initiating cybernetic takeover of autonomic biological functions…

_Biological systems stabilizing…_

_Primary rebooting, 10.8 seconds to restoration of function._

Activate program Ghostmaker-Midchilda-Alpha v0.4, route Saraswati, target Infinity Library…

Activate program Ghostmaker-Midchilda-Alpha v0.4, route Saraswati, target Shiva Communications Core…

Activate program Ghostmaker-Midchilda-Alpha v0.4, route Saraswati, target Asura Communications Core…

_Primary rebooting, 10.7 seconds to restoration of function._

_Primary rebooting, 10.6 seconds to restoration of function._

Ghostmaker complete.

Ghostmaker complete.

Ghostmaker complete.

Terminate connection Infinity Library.

Terminate connection Shiva Communications Core.

Terminate connection Asura Communications Core.

Terminate Connection Yggdrasil.

Activate program Gatecrasher-Midchilda-Beta v0.6, route Saraswati, target Yggdrasil…

Access Yggdrasil, ID Hayate Yagami, Passcode (%*G$!)%&S!%*R$^$, PIN #%^T&(…

_Primary rebooting, 10.5 seconds to restoration of function._

Access granted Yggdrasil, ID Hayate Yagami, route Saraswati.

Access student file Natalia Morisovitch.

_Primary rebooting, 10.4 seconds to restoration of function._

File accessed.

Move file from student database to hostile database.

Redesignate file Traitor.

Download full content of hostile file Traitor to on-board memory…

Integration and substitution 100% complete. Cybernetic takeover of autonomic functions complete. Biological systems stable.

_Primary rebooting, 10.3 seconds to restoration of function._

File Traitor archived.

Initiating teleport trace via Yggdrasil

Activate program Ghostmaker-Midchilda-Alpha v0.4, route Saraswati, target Yggdrasil…

Evaluate file Traitor, collate report for Primary.

Analyzing Traitor strengths/weaknesses/vulnerabilities…

_Primary rebooting, 10.2 seconds to restoration of function._

Trace initiated – automated trace running…

_Primary rebooting, 10.1 seconds to restoration of function._

Teleport completed – Shama-baa-chan now present in local time/space.

Ghostmaker complete.

Terminate connection Yggdrasil.

Terminate conneciton Beowful Brazilia.

_Primary rebooting, 10.0 seconds to restoration of function._

Teleport detected – Emergency teleport to Yagami Academy initiated by Shamal-baa-chan.

_Primary rebooting, 9.9 seconds to restoration of function._

Local interference – emergency teleport failed.

ID Interference – instability in local time/space emanating from Cid-chan.

_Primary rebooting, 9.8 seconds to restoration of function._

Elapsed time from injury: 4.8 seconds

00000

Hayate felt Cid-chan's alert trigger, and almost immediately after that Shamal reached her, _'Hayate! My wards on Cid-chan! Rafiq's fallen to me, something's wrong with Cid-chan!'_

It was not really a surprise that Shamal had placed her own monitors on Cid-chan, nor was their response in question. _'Go get her, Shamal.'_

Shamal was just beginning her teleport when first Niranjana's, then Allina's alerts triggered. _'Shamal, check Niranjana and Allina as well.'_

_'Something removed Cid-chan's teleport lock,'_ Shamal told her, _'I tried to send her home remotely, but nothing happened.'_

_'Get them out of here, don't worry about anything else,'_ Hayate told her. Then she switched and reached elsewhere, _'Nanoha, Yuuno, how are you doing against Szash?'_

_'Not well,'_ Nanoha replied, _'We took down two of her team, I think one was the force commander below Szash and Yuuno managed to capture him. But Szash and her remaining guard are tough. They're very strong, and Szash fights like you do – standing back, coordinating more than attacking, but hitting hard when she does.'_

Hayate debated for a few seconds, then shook her head. Szash would be a nice prize, but not at the cost of victory. _'Let her go. I had to release Shamal to rescue three of the kids. We're doing well, but I'm going to need support for the Wolkenritter and the kids will need support covering the infantry. I can cover support up here, but I want you two to cover the ground forces, please.'_

_'On our way,' _Nanoha answered.

_'Mistress,'_ Aria's mental voice was a surprise, _'Natalia attacked Cid-chan! We tried to teleport her out, but she canceled her monitors and tracking tag! We lost her, and… Yggdrasil is going insane!'_

_'Na-Natalia?! Why would she…'_ It was too shocking, too unbelievable to process, so Hayate shoved it to the back of her mind. There was a battle to win first, then she could figure out what had happened. _'Never mind. Secure Yggdrasil, keep track of Natalia we'll pick her up later. Have Lotte head to the teleport point, Shamal will be coming in with injured.'_

_'We know,'_ Aria told her, _'I'm so sorry, Mistress, I was distracted trying to get Akira away from Laura.'_

_'It's okay,'_ Hayate reassured her, _'we'll fix it.'_

Hayate had been hanging back, circling over the center of the city, coordinating her mages. What looked to most as a chaotic whirl was perfectly clear to her. Signum and Vita were driving two triads together, forcing them to get in each others' way. Zafira and Noriko used the resulting confusion to trap one after another, Noriko distracting and pinning the target with her petals while Zafira slipped in and bound them. Twelve of her original sixteen Bureau volunteers were spread out in an arc, pushing the Guard's upper echelon back on the quiescent shield generators, while two of their fellows had withdrawn injured, and Reian had taken another ensign with him to secure the island. Fate was a little above Hayate's position and forward, providing ranged support. It was an unusual role for her, but with Nanoha and Yuuno hunting Szash, Hayate had felt the need for her support. Lindy was with her, with another of Aignu's donated devices, both protecting Fate and securing the prisoners Zafira and Noriko were taking.

All in all, their plan to use their numbers to contain and steadily erode the Guard was working. Her forces were taking casualties, almost all among the Circles, but she found she could live with that. The Circles were her allies for the moment, but she had no illusions about their eventual trustworthiness, nor could she quite forgive them for Operation Nimrod. The slow grinding defense was testing her nerves, but taking the Guard out fast and hard would not solve the problem of the Seed, and this way they were gathering a great deal of information about the Guard's true capabilities and limits.

The only problem Hayate had with the execution of the plan was the pair goofing off around the perimeter. Akira was flitting about like a psychotic butterfly, and Laura was appearing and disappearing around him. They were fighting the Guard, but they were alternating between attacking the upper echelon and lower echelon without apparent rhyme or reason. It looked like Laura was completely focused on preventing Akira from making any attacks, while he was playing around and launching long-range spoiler attacks on other portions of the battle when Laura's back was turned. Signum was confident Laura was safe enough, and Akira was, in his own way, providing some effective ranged support, but the unpredictable nature of the pair's attacks was making it difficult to keep track of them, and to compensate for their actions.

"Time to get directly involved ourselves," Hayate told Reinforce, and the hologram nodded. No one had yet come after Hayate, but Reinforce had refused to leave her 'unprotected'.

"Szash is coming," Reinforce said, gesturing. Sure enough, two Guard mages had pulled clear of the upper echelon, and were closing on Hayate's position. "She is very brave."

"And clever," Hayate agreed, "let's make sure she can't be clever too close to us, shall we? Morningstar's Wrath." Letting go of her attempts to create a containment barrier, she channeled the energy into the attack spell. The white disc spun out quickly, almost a hundred meters above her. Raising the Sword, she woke another spell, "Sword, Blade Barrier." Swords, duplicates of the Sword of Light, appeared around her, twenty of them, all formed of energy.

Then Morningstar's Wrath was ready, and Hayate gestured with one hand at Szash, "Shoot!" The white disc so far overhead pinned down in the center, then poured into that point forming a massive bolt that struck Szash even before the last of it formed. When the explosion cleared, Szash and her last guard had barely slowed, but were stripped of their shields and struggling to build more.

Shamal reached her with a report, _'Mistress! Cid-chan's linker core is tearing itself apart! Niranjana has… some sort of neural damage, but Saraswati has done something I can't follow right now. Allina is unconscious, HAL has de-initialized. Allina's emergency teleport functioned, but Niranjana's and Cid-chan's failed. I can't find Natalia anywhere, her emergency teleport failed as well and her tracer is gone.'_

Hayate paused a moment to mourn her students, but she still had a battle to fight. _'We'll track down Natalia later. For now, get the girls home and stable.'_ Then she reached inward again, letting the universe flow around her, "Seraph." Like Flight of the Valkyrie, it altered her physically without being a true shape-shift. She grew slightly larger, her armor shifting and flowing into a new form as it hardened, and more wings appeared on her back. A shield formed in her hand, and raw power flowed over her skin, the Sword becoming light as a feather. Seraph had been Sara's answer to close combat, such as the Velka preferred. '

"Cover me, Reinforce," she said.

Reinforce's answered was a simple, "Ragnarok Breaker. Shoot."

Under cover of that strike, Hayate shot forward. Szash would be tough – she had stood up to Nanoha and Yuuno after all. But Hayate was confident, with Reinforce and the Sword answering to her. _It's time to end this._

00000

Megan jumped clear of the latest knot of Seed at Luke's mental shout. She had to wedge Longinus in a wall and catapult herself to altitude before her flight spell would stabilize again, which had previously cost her a ragged slash down her left leg. But the three Seed she had been fighting were busy dodging concrete and rebar thanks to Luke's last-minute barrage. Once she was airborne, the PLA soldiers who had been retreating under their cover opened fire again, missiles roaring down the wide street ahead of the APC's cannon.

She was halfway up the side of the sky-scraper when a flash of light made her flinch and change direction reflexively. A moment later a Seed exploded through the windows she had been about to pass, trying to tackle her in mid-air. It was one of the big ones, larger even than her war form, and only by nearly dislocating her shoulder and hip did she avoid its claws. It crashed through the wall of the building across the street without seeming to notice, and stuck its head out to glare at her for a moment, before vanishing into the building.

_Merciful Christ,_ she thought, _that thing almost got me. When did these things get that smart?_ The two of them, after the proved too be fast enough underwater to prevent Luke from creating another Rainbow Serpent, had fallen into line with their classmates. They had been providing the last-ditch cover to allow the PLA to fall back form one position to the next.

"They're learning our tricks," Luke said as she joined him, both of them now keeping to the center of the street.

Megan shifted back to human with a thought, tired and aching. She had found that shifting allowed her to repair some damage, and recover some energy, but never completely. Now she was flagging, and knew it. "I can't do that again," she said. "My claws aren't hurting them, biting them hurts me more than it hurts them, and I can't keep Longinus sharp enough to hurt them. I'm out of rebar, too. I'm not strong enough, not tough enough."

Luke nodded before asking, "Can you shift into a Seed?"

Megan could not repress a shudder, "No, not a chance. We don't know what gives them their magic immunity. There are a couple organs Shamal-sensei hasn't identified yet, some things that might be implants, it might be spells. I could become a Seed, but I wouldn't be able to get back, or retain my own mind probably. I need something bigger, something stronger."

"Stay human for now," Luke said. "Our combo was working pretty well, but the others have been doing fine with just ranged support."

Megan nodded, but hated the thought. She was a shape-shifter, she was supposed to be able to take a form to fill any need. It never occurred to her that the Seed were custom designed for their role, refined over centuries before Al Hanthis' disappearance. It only mattered that her best had not been good enough. So as they moved to the next platoon that needed cover to fall back, she wracked her brain, looking for a way to improve her warform, for something stronger, faster, tougher

She found it in a restaurant sign, of all things, right before the building was blown sky high.

00000

Natalia's first self-initiated teleport did not take her very far, just shy of a hundred kilometers south. She appeared in open air, over the ocean, to find one man waiting for her, standing on the water's surface. He was tall and stocky, in gray-on-white, waiting patiently with his hands clasped in the small of his back. She floated down towards him, "Lord Protector?"

"Miss Morisovitch. I admit, I was uncertain if you would keep our bargain."

Natalia almost flinched at that, hearing the unspoken comment that she had broken a prior 'bargain' with Hayate, but she managed to keep her face impassive. "I am here, Lord Protector."

"And the price?"

"I am still a student, Lord Protector, and lack the capacity to eliminate any of my former teachers, save with the greatest of luck. The strongest of the students is…" she had to pause, the enormity of what she had done crushing down on her. She blinked, swallowed the lump in her throat, and reminded herself why she was here, "… is dead, along with one of the more dangerous students."

Yosho cocked an eyebrow, "How?"

"I caused a self-destructive instability loop in their linker cores. Their linker cores will tear themselves apart, and the energy bleed off will kill them, within minutes." _They were not conscious long enough to feel anything,_ she added, trying to salve her conscience.

He actually blanched at that, then nodded. "Very well, then." He reached out a hand, and lifted the patch off her eye. For a few moments the two of them stared at one another, and for the first time in a year, Natalia felt hope again – all she saw when she looked at him was him. No death, no children, no countdowns, no inevitable fate, _just him_.

He studied her eye silently, until he was satisfied, and then replaced the eye-patch. "I know the man to help you with that. He's retired, a philosopher more than anything else, but he understands the Void better than any living soul. Now, however," A gesture, and six Protectors floated up out of the water, eying her warily. "These men and women will assist you in retrieving your brother and grandmother, then bring the three of you to Al Hanthis. Welcome to the Masters of Vision, Adept Natalia."

00000

Singh had seen many things during his years in the People's Liberation Army. The rise to Sergeant had not been easy for a farmer's son from so far west he knew as much Arabic as Mandarin. He had seen immense war machines grind over impassable terrain, grown men float through the sky like birds on wings of silk, and things mortal man was not meant to understand. He had known, by the time he arrived in Hong Kong on the first of December, that he was a properly experienced and jaded Sergeant. He was fully possessed of the proper combination of martial spirit and cynical disbelief to ride herd on conscripts that still believed in the First Emperor's divinity and young Lieutenants too new to have the shiny rubbed off.

He started questioning that jaded status on the second of December. Watching people – real people who came down and spoke with the Lieutenant in oddly accented Mandarin – flit about in the sky like hummingbirds reminded him of legends of the Gods. Watching them lift entire buildings with nothing but gestures and words woke the feelings of terror and awe he remembered from childhood tales of invincible heroes, balanced by the demons the division had supposedly been deployed to fight. Singh was honestly unsure if he was comfortable or not with the sorcerers' presence.

Then came the morning of the Third of December.

The plan, as it had been passed down to him and the Lieutenant, was simple. The platoon would deploy by squads across the street behind the first line of barricades. Ten blocks in, a reserve platoon would deploy. They would engage the demons with one volley, then independent fire, until the demons reached fifteen meters of their line. At that point, by squads, they would fall back under cover from their APCs and some of the sorcerers, to the second barricade one block to the rear. This would repeat until they reached the reserve platoon, by which time, according to command, the demons would be sufficiently reduced in numbers to be containable.

Singh was in the main line, one block from the water. They had been issued a ridiculous number of RPGs that morning, a few heavier missiles, and the platoon's APCs were parked right behind them. But when the first of those demons had crawled up out of the water, with their soulless eyes and hideous scales, Singh found himself silently agreeing with those of his troopers who felt the need to pray out loud, even as he added his own favorite prayer, "Open fire."

They had been provided with a ridiculous number of 'surplus missiles' from over seas, and Singh had found it hard to reconcile their armament with the description of their targets. No creature could out-tough a tank, after all, it was simple fact. That morning, though, he understood. His platoon fired three heavy anti-tank missiles, fourteen RPGs, their remaining assault rifles, and four APCs cannons. Of the four Seed to appear in their lane of fire, they hit two, one with an RPG and one with an APC cannon. All four made it to cover before independent fire picked up. When the water spout roared its way along the waterfront a minute later, carrying demons and debris off along the water-front, Singh thought the battle would be easy.

But more demons rose out of the waves, moving more cautiously than the first had. They climbed out of the water out of line of sight from the streets, mostly, well enough not to be easy targets. Instead of moving into the streets, the creatures took to the buildings. Singh could hear them, bashing down doors, shattering glass, and tearing through walls. They were not being subtle, but they were making it impossible for him and his men to target them effectively.

Leaning over as the men began pouring random fire into the buildings the Seed had entered, he whispered to the Lieutenant, "Sir, we should pull the men into the central positions."

"Prepare them to fall back early as well," the younger man replied, "Pull in the left, I'll get the right."

They had to pull the flanking squads further back as well as inwards, to avoid crowding the central squad's lanes of fire, but the staggered-V formation was a standard for narrow terrain. Then the first demon popped its head out – a quick motion to look over their position that nonetheless drew three rockets and countless bullets – and the Lieutenant decided that, orders or not, they were too close.

The sorcerers came in to cover them falling back, and Singh was moderately impressed and jealous. It was not the flight, so much as the attack spells they used to break off chunks of the building for ammunition. He was unsure why they did not aim those spells at the _demons_, like any sane soldier, but he would have loved to have them for his own use. The child-sorcerers, when they arrived for the second redeployment, were far more impressive. Where the older sorcerers stayed well back, the kids had no trouble coming right down to head-height, and in the case of the African girl, actually went hand to hand with one of the demons.

The constant retreating and fleeting targets were setting Singh's nerves on edge, and it was really getting to the troops. Making it worse, the only time they had shots on the demons were when the evil things left cover to attack. The demons had no ranged weapons, fortunately, but their speed and cunning meant the troops had, at most, a few seconds to see the threat, aim their weapons, and fire. It was not much time, and one in three demon attacks reached the lines, but the extra rockets and, especially, the RPGs left a lot of downed demons. Most retreated once they were badly injured, and Singh had seen at least one go back into the water and swim away, but there were several dead ones back along the street.

There were more dead soldiers, though, and Singh made it a point to avoid seeing them. The wounded were bad enough, but one in two demons that attacked the line, reached the line. Their first target never fared well, most of them dying mercifully quickly, considering the wounds inflicted. Those dying men bought their comrades time to aim, however, and the demons seemed to get confused once they were in amongst the line, unable to focus on a new target, which was where most of the injuries came from. The demons would go for both men to either side, and thus not manage to kill either.

The platoon was getting close to half strength when they finally reached the final fall-back position, but there were not nearly enough demons downed. Their last retreat had been covered by what looked like a demon itself, a weird man-wolf thing wielding a huge spear, that promptly turned into a little girl once it was airborne again.

Singh caught the Lieutenant – sporting a useless arm he insisted was soaked by other men's blood – by the command APC. The men had just begun falling into the last of the prepared positions, and he kept one eye on them as he asked, "Sir, any word on reinforcements?"

The Lieutenant grimaced, "Third battalion just started moving in from the airport road, they should be hitting the demons in the back in ten. Our own reserve is already deployed – apparently our platoon's been doing better than most, held out longer. I'd be proud of that, except retreating a little less quickly isn't something to be proud of. Aside from that," the younger man actually stood up – a blatant violation of usual battlefield survival rules – and shouted, "Masks and cover! Masks and cover! Demolition charges in one minute!"

Singh could not help looking at him like he was insane. "Demolition charges?"

"Our backup hasn't been idle," the Lieutenant replied, dropping back into cover with a grin, "apparently engineers spent last night seeding that last line of buildings, all the way around the final perimeter, with demolition charges. They've been working right through the battle. Once the last platoon gets back into line, which would be us, they're setting them off."

Seconds later, as the last of his squad dropped behind the line of sandbags and rubble, the sorcerers closed in, and a weird glow appeared just in front of the barricade. The demons sped up at that, actually leaving cover to run in the open in brief sprints, but any shots taken hit the glow and detonated without effect. Then came the rumble of explosions, distant at first but closing from both sides, accompanied by a tremble in the very ground. Singh recognized the sound and feeling, even if he had never been near a building demolition – artillery barrages were close enough for him, so he did what any sane man did under artillery – he tackled the Lieutenant to the ground and manhandled both of them under the APC.

The thunder and rumble of collapsing glass, steel, concrete, brick and wood felt and sounded world-ending. By rights, he should have been buried under a mountain of rubble and left to suffocate or starve to death. Instead, he was feeling mildly embarrassed as nothing happened beyond noise and a mild earthquake. When he and the Lieutenant crawled out from under the APC, the weird glow had deflected the debris – including almost all the dust – out over the streets they had left, instead of over their new positions.

For a few minutes, as the dust cloud faded and the debris settled, Singh thought it was over. But motion in the rubble continued long after it should have, and then one demon, then another, and more, began appearing. Just heads, poking out of pockets and folds, looking in their direction, but the demons lived. The Lieutenant began barking orders, and the reserve forces passed forward RPGs and heavier rockets, but Singh began to wonder what the point was. The only weapon that had so far routinely hit and hurt a demon was the RPG, but one demon would take four or even five or six warheads.

_We're done for,_ Signh decided. _The demons are too strong, too tough, and we don't have the range to stop them._

Not that such thoughts were going to stop him, but he liked to be honest with himself. So he snagged a passing RPG, and moved left while the Lieutenant moved right, talking to the men, repeating the litanies they all knew by heart, and thereby steadying them. Then a shout from above distracted him, and he looked up to see the girl plummeting out of the sky, beginning to glow yellow. He was not sure what had happened, but she did not look conscious, and she was falling on the wrong side of the line. He noted her landing area, and saw three demons closing on that position.

"Third squad," he shouted, pointing at the most obvious of the demons, "target front, eleven o'clock, fire at will!" Five RPGs lanced out, and one got a chunk of the demon – worse than average, but only slightly – convincing it to dive for cover again. Before his squad could shift fire, however, the sorceress, or whatever she was, landed.

She had started out as a girl, maybe old enough to be interested in boys, but certainly throwing around enough power to belong up there with the other sorcerers. Certainly not big, or even impressive in appearance, despite being foreign.

What landed along the platoon's front was anything but small, and only a lunatic would call it unimpressive. It sent tremors through the ground worse than the demolitions, and sent another cloud of dust into the air. Singh's mind refused to accept what he was seeing at first, just seeing a mass of scales and mane and whiskers, huge five-clawed paws large enough to snag a demon apiece, fangs the size of his head or larger, in a riot of blues, greens, and yellow, all in a twisting writhing mass.

"Ao Qin," one of the Privates murmured in awe.

The comment, and the shouted repetitions that followed, spreading down the line, clarified what Singh was looking at, and the staid, cynical Sergeant found himself believing once more. Shifting on the rubble, two demons crushed beneath it, was nothing less than a dragon, the size of a jet liner, wise old eyes staring at the troops as they cheered. The sight of the girl's fellow floating about her head shouting at her in some weird dialect of Japanese would have been disrespectful, had it not been so comical.

Then a demon leaped on the dragon's back, and another tried for the boy. A wave of RPGs swept the second from the sky, but the first was too close to the dragon. The demon landed, and the dragon's form shimmered, seemed to waver around the demon a moment, before the dragon rolled. It flipped over, writhing like a wounded snake, crushing the demon into the rubble, then took to the sky, another demon caught up in each front claw.

Watching it spiral up into the sky, seeing the two demons tossed clear, Singh's certainty of failure, the grim intent to sell his life dearly, faded to nothing. Letting discipline slide, even as he found a fresh RPG, he joined in his regiment's new battle cry, "AO QIN!"

00000

While the dragon rising over Hong Kong brought new life to the People's Liberation Army, Teri Maunders was a little too busy to notice or properly appreciate the sight.

The HQ defense company and Black Dogs had found the Guard's advance team easily enough – Reian and one of his volunteers were slugging it out with a trio of Guard mages, and none of them were being subtle anymore. Watching the buster spells fly back and forth was more than a little intimidating. When Bogdanovich and Gershaw managed to land sniper and machine-gun rounds, respectively, on one of those guard mages, a slew of those same buster spells had suddenly fell in amongst the transports, and they had bailed out.

The force had managed to close on the Guard's perimeter, but had not yet managed to penetrate it or break up the disruption ritual inside. While the PLA troopers were proving ineffective, the Black Dogs were just the opposite, between them able to take down a Guard mage every few minutes, and after seeing him in action, Maunders found herself questioning if Jubal really needed a bullet through the brain. The man's psychotic chuckling made the questioning brief.

Unfortunately, the Dogs were not doing well enough. There had been ten Guard mages on perimeter. Reian had accounted for one, another volunteer for a second, and the Dogs for three, by the time Megan took on her latest form. The Guard had accounted for Reian's fellow, and while they had not yet gotten one of the Dogs, they were inflicting terrible casualties on the PLA.

Then one of them got lucky, and Reian fell out of the sky. He crashed down, hard, some thirty feet from the wrong side of the wall Maunders and Thorngrave were using for cover, and Maunders swore viciously. Heretic or not, that kid had been the Dogs' last backup and best defense. _We need a wolfpack,_ she thought, _or even, Heaven forgive me, a device mage, someone to stand up to these bastards on their own footing._

Thorngrave grabbed her shoulder to get her attention. "Pull the PLA back," he ordered, "The Dogs'll cover the retreat. We can have the French kid call the Witch down on these bastards, we aren't going to take them."

Maunders stared to nod, but the last APC detonated at that moment, and Thorngrave jerked her further into cover as shrapnel pelted the area. Maunders got enough of a view to recognize that their transport was gone, and growled in frustration. She rolled upright, got her rifle over the cover, and emptied half a clip into the nearest Guard mage she could find before ducking out of the way of his retaliation. "We need time to get out on foot, that you can't buy," she said. A duck of her head to the side, looking for that last mage, only showed her Reian. She could not tell if he was alive or not, but a glint of silver by his hand gave her an idea. _No time to think, act first explain later,_ she decided. Dropping her rifle, she set in sprinter's position, and shouted, "Cover me!"

Bolting from cover was one of the dumbest things a soldier can do in combat. Her instructors at Basic, her own Sergeants through the years, her own experience, all of that made it abundantly clear that running from cover – without more cover immediately to hand – was suicide. But between the Dogs and PLA, the Guard had other concerns than one soldier running laterally across the battle field. So long as she did not close with the ritual, there were more immediate threats.

She reached Reian at near a dead run, slid the last couple yards to get herself turned around, then rolled him into a fireman's carry, making dead certain to grab his device. The nearest piece of cover was five yards to her left, and she struggled into a credible run in that direction, jumping the blasted wall and dumping Reian behind it without much care for his wounds. If he was alive, he would stay that way long enough. If he was dead, a few more bumps would hardly hurt him.

For a few seconds after that, she slumped in place, panting far more than she should have. "Getting out of shape, you stupid old broad," she muttered, "all the damn desk work you've been doing."

Then she turned her attention to the dormant device, ignoring how it made her skin crawl. It was flat, about the size of a playing card, but marked by the Bureau seal on one side, and another symbol on the other that reminded her of a unit patch. There was certainly nothing on it to tell her how to activate it. "Fuck it," she muttered, and channeled a little bit of energy into the device. "I don't know how you work, or even if you will for me," she snarled at it, "but you'll bloody well help me now, or so help me God, I'm going to march out there and shove you so far up some Guard mage's ass, he'll need a dentist to get you out!" She thought she felt something, a feeling of curiosity, something odd in her linker core, but ignored it.

She had a single idea to get herself, the Dogs, and the PLA out of this, and it was a long-shot. As a Journeyman, she had helped Hughes with a lot of his research, even if she was technically Ops, not R&D. So despite it being Master Adept rank and thus technically beyond her, she knew Hughes' most powerful spell. She formed it now, carefully and probably not perfectly, but well enough. Just as she began, she felt the strangest sensation, and then the structure of her spell fell apart as a flood of power slammed into it. But the spell restructured, even as the card in her hand formed a short wide-bladed staff, and within seconds she as ready to release it. Praying it would work, she gave Thorngrave what warning she could, "EMP!"

00000

Author's Note: Just a couple points, since I think they'll be asked about. The first section was originally just me playing around, wondering how a device would think, and once it was written out and refined, it was too interesting not to include. I know, I know, 'real hacking doesn't work that way'… except it does, when the prep work is already done and all you care about is forcing a way in. Details on what Saraswati did, how it did it, and the repercussions of the hacking, will be covered later, as well a specifics on Niranjana's injuries, as part of Hong Kong's aftermath. Also, I know this is the second 'upgrade' for Megan in very short order, but it's where I've been headed with her for a while. I've been picturing a dragon over Hong Kong since I decided on that city for the first major battle. Only problems were a dragon, even a Chinese dragon, wouldn't fit in any of Hayate's workrooms, and there's the problem of where would she get the details from, given how detail-oriented her shapeshifting is.

Ao Qin is, in Chinese mythology, the Dragon King of the Southern Seas, one of four Dragon Kings, among the most powerful spirits of Heaven.

00000

CrimsonDX: Natalia has snapped, but she has her reasons. Those reasons are bad ones, Yosho referred to both of them above, but they are powerful for Natalia. Natalia's rise and fall aren't over yet, but details will be forthcoming as the story unfolds.

pfeil: Given the in-series descriptions of Nanoha and Fate, I think Allina's probably right. I know Allina's right that Hayate and Takashi could do it.

Baughn: I surprised you? Yes! Victory!:) I honestly thought you would be one of those to see Natalia's betrayal coming. Glad you enjoyed it, though.

Tombadgerlock: and I quote, "There are worse things than death, and I can do all of them.":) Just don't ask me who said it, because I'm not sure. Seriously, though, any named-character fatalities will be far more drawn out and dramatic than last chapter.

Kell Shock: You are correct, sir, that should have been 'they put-paid'. And my stinking keyboard just missed the Y _again_. Natalia is the much foreshadowed traitor, though it has less to do with her being Russian and more to do with her terror at being 'alone'. As for Szash's 'threats', go back and re-read that scene – Szash was not at her most diplomatic, and she had specific objectives that were not 'turn Hayate's students against her', but look at what she originally said to Noriko – it was an offer, not a threat. Szash was also not the only faction in Al Hanthis looking to subvert a student. The attack on Cid-chan was due to who Natalia wound up in contact with (Yosho) – remember his price of 'the strongest'? Natalia's & Szash's relationship will show up later, but Natalia didn't turn for Szash's offer, she turned for Yosho's offer, which will have repercussions for the rest of the story.

A006: This is more the 'second act twist' than the curtain opening, but it is all downhill from here. The thing about betrayals, especially in combat, is that they are devastating for being unexpected. The relative inexperience of Niranjana and Cid-chan didn't help, either – one of the teachers walking into the hospital tent after Cid-chan's injury would have been able to turn Natalia's attack back on her and capture her, for instance. Allina's distraction was a 'happy accident', from Natalia's perspective (and you'll note from above that she's not aware anything happened to Allina). Allina is vulnerable to active countermeasures, just how vulnerable will be detailed in the next couple of chapters. The Moderns are producing something – the ammunition Thorngrave showed off just prior to Shanghai. Nanoha's family is Takamichi, though – two A's, two I's – per ye olde font of erroneous trivia, Wikipedia.

SpaceBrotha: welcome back, glad to hear from you! Hayate does prefer talking to fighting - remember who her best friends are, and what she wanted to do on coming back to Earth. Szash was not so much worried about bloodshed, as observing the formalities, the traditional exchange of insults and demands for surrender which precede a battle to prove the combatants are 'civilized'. Also, it bought her time to be sure of her set-up. As for Szash's name, I don't remember what name I started with (it might have been 'Sara', come to think of it), but I took a regular name and played with letters until it sounded sufficiently sinister. Being the best combatant is entirely possible without killing, it's just excruciatingly difficult - Laura is very, very likely to break her oath without meaning to. It's just she is constitutionally incapable of doing nothing, or declining a challenge this comprehensive. I'm sorry about the lack of clarity on Luke's and Meghan's initial position, they were flying out over the Bay, between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, a little closer to Kowloon (on Google Maps satellite view, they would have been between the W Kowloon Highway Bridge & Stonecutter's Island). You're right about the ice, but execution would have been more difficult - it's easier to get water (especially salt water) moving, than to get it frozen, and Rainbow Serpent moved a lot less water than a two-foot think layer of ice over the water between Stonecutters Island and the WKH Bridge, where the Seed attacked from. The island and bridge are roughly two kilometers apart, with docking and harbor space that's probably four or five square kilometers - a heck of a lot of water to freeze. Hayate or Takashi could have done it and maintained it, and that may be a tactic to counter future Seed attacks. Also, Chrono's the one with the cold-aspected magic, and he's busy overthrowing the Bureau. I'm afraid you won't see much in the way of Guard spells (offensive or defensive) for a while yet, mostly because a lot of how they're using it is fairly general combat, and because coming up with a coherent set of spells for them is proving annoying. Another part of how defensive they seem is how I tend to see and write situations - perspective is from one character, who doesn't always see everything or necessarily pay attention to what's coming at them. I'll work on incorporating their magic sooner. Akira's presence in the battle will be explained probably next chapter, but he was not there to fight. Essentially, he picked on Laura for his own entertainment, and to peripherally fulfill his purpose for being - beating sense into Laura protects her, which indirectly protects Hayate. There may be some side-stories from the battle, but nothing's planned at the moment - then again, I posted Strong Right Hand how long after the New Delhi rescues, and SRH finally detailed what everyone else was doing during Mariachi's rescue, so it may happen. Betrayal is usually very stupid, especially when it's a betrayal of someone like Hayate. As for Natalia, remember that she's always been afraid of losing what's left of her family, and Hayate never offered her any hope there beyond a new family - Yosho offered Natalia her old family, and control over her eye. The thing about front-liners being relatively safe and REMFs being the ones getting hurt is a side-effect of the Guard tactics, which I realize have not been properly detailed here - there's a scene early in next chapter that should clarify that, but the fact is, the Circles have taken _serious_ casualties in Hong Kong while Hayate's people have been relatively unscathed. Further details on the injuries will probably not show up next chapter, but the chapter after that. Regarding the monitors on Natalia and the rest, who says they didn't notice? But Natalia was fully aware of that, and elapsed time from Natalia's betrayal to Maunders' EMP (i.e. - this entire chapter) is only five or six minutes. The problem with any 'safety' measure is that anyone who's aware of it can willingly subvert it. Campus response is also planned for next chapter. Whew, long review & reply there… Thanks for reading!

Jack Bauer Reborn: Devices are programmed in a specialized language developed by Mid Childan & Velkan experts over hundreds of years. Perl, from what I've heard, would probably come closest, if you crossed it with HTML & laced the whole thing with rocket fuel. You're partly right about 'spoofing' back when Niranjana & Allina activated their devices - as I learned it, it's exactly what you said (falsifying some identifying information) and exactly what Niranjana's device did - falsifying it's identity. There may be another term floating around the hacking community for a completely falsified computer identity, but the one I was taught is 'spoofing'. Sorry about the character confusion, I've been having some issues with that myself, mostly in forgetting characters I meant to appear in a scene and having to go back and re-insert them. Glad you've enjoyed it so far, and thanks of the reviews!

Advent000: Yeah, last chapter was unpleasant, but sort of necessary. Luke and Natalia are just friends/classmates. _Ichigo_ & Natalia though… may be something else. Haven't decided yet, but last chapter's events will but a crimp in that relationship, whatever it was.

AluciusDawn: Seeing things from the one character's point of view is great! That's got to be one of the best compliments I've gotten on here, that any of my characters can be identified with that thoroughly. Thank you! I'm not done with Natalia yet, though, more to come, more to come… Critiquing things as a reader is perfectly valid, since whether or not you can write a scene well enough to capture a reader, you know when a scene has captured you. Like me and singing - I'm forbidden from singing on pain of severe bodily harm, but I know good singing from bad, and great singing from good. So, critique away. I just wanted to be sure it wasn't bad writing. As for last chapter, well… I've been setting Natalia up for this for a while, but I'm glad I still managed to surprise people. As I mentioned to SpaceBrotha, the front lines are being hit, and hard, it's just the named characters aren't catching the damage. Natalia's actions and Maunders will be the most drastic out of the battle, with the farthest-reaching consequences. I'm rather proud of Szash's strategy, the massive diversionary attack and all, further details probably the chapter after next. And yes, Akira is a major asshole, mostly by design - I find writing him is great for my own personal stress-relief, though.

Jack Inqu: Battles are iffy things to write, sometimes I like writing them, sometimes I don't. It's a huge battle with some major events in it, but I'm used to and prefer focused scenes, so I'm ambivalent. The Akira/Laura scene was mostly about Laura's progression - she killed Li ten months ago, in story, and is still working her way past that. Akira's actions were a kick in the pants when she was about to mess up - and also all sorts of fun for Akira. Regarding Natalia, I can honestly say that I both pity and despise her for last chapter, despite her being my creation. I won't comment on the 'Dark Witch' guess, not yet, mostly because I won't reveal any of the 'Red Baron' nicknames until they're used in-story. As of the above, you now have proof that Niranjana will survive, but in what condition is the question:). The status of all three injured students will be revealed in the chapter after next, most likely, though there are two twist that will take a while to work in. You are right that Natalia's betrayal will hit Hayate and company very hard, and their reactions will seriously alter their responses to Al Hanthis, the Circles, and Natalia. This is the lowest point, but it's not all sunshine and lightness ahead, there's more fighting to be done before this is resolved. Thanks for the review!


	29. 28 The Fall of Hong Kong

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-28 – The Fall of Hong Kong-

East of the city, over the old airport, a Guard mage deflected Ichigo's first strike with a shield over his hand, then rolled around Ichigo to use him as a block against Toushiro's Fire Arrow spell. A second later, the man plummeted out of the sky before dodging away, while Ichigo was forced on the defensive by a rain of light buster spells from over the harbor. None were powerful enough to do more than damage his barrier jacket, but there were a lot of them, and he had to break off or risk getting hurt. Again.

Truth be told, Ichigo was getting more than a little frustrated. Almost two hours they had been fighting, and he and Toushiro had managed next to nothing, as far as he could tell. They had covered several retreating platoons, stopped one attempt by a lone Guard mage to get at Mariachi, and managed to pin down the range and effectiveness of Mariachi's disruption effect – about two kilometers. The problem was, neither of them was fast and tough enough to stand up to a Seed, and the Guard were not obliging enough to engage the duo.

The Guard had been playing it very cagey. Each time Toushiro or Ichigo moved to help a Circle mage in trouble, the Guard mages harassing him would get in one more volley, then break and retreat under covering fire from a third mage further out. By the time Ichigo and Toushiro were able to engage them, another Circle mage in the other direction was in trouble. If they moved to engage the supporting Guard mage, as the two of them just had, said support mage would evade and attack a Circle mage, while one of his fellows took up support from a safe range. Aside from the one Guard who had gone after Mariachi, and subsequently had an unfortunate encounter with Toushiro's exploding shield, the Guard refused to engage any of them.

It made sense, from a coldly logical perspective. The Circle mages were easy targets, relatively speaking. Aside from a few long-time comrades, the Circle mages were pathetically inept at working together. Yussef had explained to the Myrmidons the night before that the Circles were too used to the calm cooperation of a ritual circle or political maneuvers to adjust to the rapid stress of combat. Seeing the boss proven right would have been pleasant, if not for the cost. The wolfpacks made the Circle mages powerful, but only a couple had any idea how to use that power, certainly nowhere near the level of the Guard. Each of them insisted on using their power separately, leaving them vulnerable. Ichigo was honestly wondering why the wolfpacks had given them such trouble the year before, and why they did not try to combine wolfpacks into a second, more powerful wolfpack.

_'Hey, Berry-kun,'_ Toushiro said, _'I've got an idea.'_

Sighing at his new nickname, Ichigo replied, _'You're never going to forgive me for telling the first years to call you Shiro, are you? What's your grand idea?'_

_'A Husker Hail Mary.'_

Ichigo actually stumbled in mid-air, and caught a nasty buster spell for it, enough to punch through his armor and give him a bit of a burn. _'A __what__?'_

Toushiro, proving himself an uncaring bastard, ignored Ichigo's new injury and chuckled. _'You need to watch more sci-fi. A Husker Hail Mary. Teleport in, launch your strike at zero range, teleport out before the back-blast hits you.'_

While Toushiro explained, they turned on the woman who had tried to blindside Ichigo. Two Buster Cannons, one from each of them, reminded the errant Guard mage to why she had kept her distance previously, but neither boy managed more than a glancing hit. _'Um, minor point, Hayate-sensei hasn't taught us to teleport yet.'_

_'No, but Natalia and I found a method, reading ahead. It's complicated, but mostly just the math, which Daikyu and Masamune can handle, especially for such short ranges. The plan is, you teleport yourself in to zero range, like arm's reach, of a Guard mage and nail him with an exploding shield – it's quick and simple and if he breathes on it, it'll go off. While you're doing that, I pull you out, timing it to just after your attack launches. Those two strikes should bring down his shields, then while he's recovering, we can both hammer him with Buster Cannons from a nice safe distance. Sound good?'_

_'It sounds insane,'_ Ichigo complained. _'Send me the teleport data.'_

Ichigo barely noticed the packet of information, the devices handled it on their own. Masamune wormed the information he needed into the back of his mind a moment later, and Ichigo shook his head. _'This is going to hurt, Toushiro. But, whenever you're ready.'_

Toushiro did not respond, and when Ichigo glanced at him, his friend was floating in mid air, gawking like a tourist at the foot of Tokyo Tower. Turning in the direction Toushiro was staring, Ichigo could understand the shock. The sight of a dragon coiling in the air over downtown, Seed falling away from it in painfully long falls, was awe-inspiring. "Megan's playing, I see," he said aloud, then reached over to poke Toushiro between the eyes. "We're supposed to be doing something other than staring at exhibitionist girls."

Toushiro blinked, then glared and swatted his hand away. "She's not a... gah, pervert."

"I wasn't the one staring at her," Ichigo shrugged, "I'm going, feel free to do your part any time."

Putting together his first teleport was not easy, but the Guards' tactics worked in his favor. So long as he and Toushiro did not do anything to aggressive, the Guard tended to ignore them alone to focus on the Circles. _That is going to come back to bite them,_ Ichigo thought, as he and Masamune figured out how the teleport would work. At this short range, it would be very fast, and that massively simplified the calculations necessary.

He was a little nervous about his first teleport, more nervous about relying on Toushiro's first teleport to get him out of what he was about to do, but Yussef had taught all of them that sometimes you had to take a risk to win. So he focused on his target, someone who was not moving much – the 'support' mage for the nearest Guard triad was perfect – and threw himself into the unknown.

He arrived just a little off, too close for the Blast Shield – his and Toushiro's still somewhat unpredictable reactive shield – so he swung Masamune in a short sharp arc, snapping, "Backblast." The spell was simple, power channeled into the turbulence of the blade, amplifying the turbulence to jet-engine levels. It worked, mostly, knocking the Guard mage sideways and opening him up for the Blast Shield.

Before Ichigo could cast the spell, as Toushiro's teleport was just taking hold of him, Ichigo felt a lurching sensation, and then a wavering white wall washed over him, and the magic vanished.

It felt like standing inside a bell as someone rang it. The whole world vibrated, not going crazy but shimmering and loosing focus. His magic simply cut off, vanishing, Masamune collapsing into storage mode and his armor fading back into the shorts and t-shirt he had woken up in. Then his stomach was in his throat, as he plummeted out of the sky.

_Well shit,_ he thought, _I guess Natalia did use her eye on me last night._

He caught sight of motion, to one side, and realized the Guard mage he had been attacking was also falling, that everyone seemed to be dropping out of the sky. Then the world went green, he recognized the feel of the school's teleporters just as he slammed into something that was softer than the runway tarmac he expected, but still far too hard.

00000

Szash recovered from Hayate's first strike with more than a little surprise. The spell from her bodyguard had been impressive, but expected from a major combatant. The dimensional fracture that Hayate had somehow channeled into an attack spell, though, had been an order of magnitude worse.

_'Wonder where she hides the generators,'_ Szash mentioned to Eri as they resumed closing on their target. _'There was nothing big enough at that school of hers, the ships in orbit have trouble powering themselves...'_

_'Now is not the time, General,'_ Eri responded. _'She's preparing another spell.'_

_'Can you block it?'_

_'Possibly. The body-guard's spells, certainly.'_

_'Then you handle the body-guard, I'll handle Hayate. Wherever she's getting her power, she can't match Al Hanthis.'_

Hayate glowed for a moment, seeming to become slightly larger, and then a cloud of blades appeared around her. Szash noted them, and shook her head bemusedly. A static form, even that numerous, was flashy but wasteful. The energy used in maintaining the blades would be better spent in an attack spell or shield. Then Hayate began closing, rapidly, flitting through the air more like a bird than a mage.

Szash let her come, calling more shields and launching a series of basic attack spells. Nothing too fancy, just the basics every Guard and Protector mage was taught, testing. Hayate proved maneuverable, but given her people's focus on physical combat, that was no surprise. Barbaric combat methods certainly taught them to be quick on their feet. She rapidly scaled up the spells, noting Eri off to her right doing the same, but long before she reached spells more befitting her rank, Hayate was upon her.

The woman was small, and fiendishly fast in spite of those huge glowing wings. The sword in her hands passed through most of Szash's shields like paper, and the cloud of energy-blades battered their way through the rest. But Szash had seen the Battle of Cairo and knew roughly what to expect. She had not figured out how they created custom shields in skin-contact, but she and Gali had put together a Guard version, last-ditch automatics the size of her palm in overlapping plates. Hayate's blades faded as they were used, and the last slashed into Szash's last-ditch shields, taking a few down but leaving the General herself unscathed.

Watching Hayate's people attacking the Five-oh-First had been educational, and Szash thought she was prepared for the same sort of focused insanity. But Hayate did not fight in her subordinates' styles. There was no manic assault, no coldly perfect form, no animal rending. Hayate was smooth, fast, relentless, the end of every motion flowing into the next attack, but oddly flamboyant, always in motion. She relied on her energy-blades to diffuse and degrade Szash's defenses, and focused entirely on keeping too close for Szash to escape. It was a thrilling challenge, avoiding that wicked sword while trying to form a spell or get out of the way.

Forcing herself through motions she had only ever learned for tradition and physical conditioning, improvising shields on the fly to block what she could and redirect the rest, left her panting with effort in seconds. The minute or so she was trapped under Hayate's assault was one of the most thrilling experiences of Szash's life. With her pulse and breath thundering in her ears, just a whisker from serious and painful injury, Szash could appreciate why Hayate and her people chose to fight this way. There was an immediacy and rush that proper combat could not match.

Then Eri finally managed to intervene, a blast of power from one of Hayate's body-guard's spells forcing Hayate to break off and giving Szash precious seconds of breathing room. Hayate immediately circled to renew her attack, but the primitive flight spell she was using required her to circle wider than had been necessary when she was driving Szash in the direction she was flying. Szash watched her go, and tapped into the generators that were hers alone, forming her next spell precisely.

Szash used the moment to reach a telepathic line to her. _'You're very impressive, Hayate,'_ she said, _'but you can't really handle me, you know. I am the commanding General of the city Guard of Al Hanthis. You're one woman, standing with a few friends. I have the support and power of my city at my beck and call.'_

_'I have heard such words before,'_ Hayate answered. _'Strangely, those who said them to me and to my friends were all defeated by, my friends and I.'_

_'So be it,'_ Szash had not expected her to back down, but it had been worth the attempt. The thought of someone like Hayate as an ally was too attractive a proposition to abandon. _Maybe she just needs to lose to see what I mean,_ Szash thought, and raised her hands over her head.

Power rushed to her call from Al Hanthis, conduits forming to carry even more energy, her own personal power shaping those conduits to form a single titanic attack spell. _'All Guard,'_ Szash broadcast, _'Bombardment in ten seconds, clear to my altitude.'_ Caught up in the moment, seeing Hayate just getting into position to resume her own attack run, Szash released her spell, "l'Arc en Ciel," she saw when Hayate heard her, saw the disbelief on the other woman's face as the ribbon of runes formed in the air and reality itself trembled before her, "_fire_!"

00000

Hayate had almost had Szash open to a binding, _almost_ managed to end the fight, when Szash's remaining body-guard managed to redirect Reinforce's Ragnarok Breaker.

That had been incredibly aggravating. Szash was not as fast and canny as Signum and Vita, about as quick as Laura, but the General had been almost completely defensive once Hayate closed. The perception, speed and strength enhancements of the Seraph spell had allowed Hayate all the time in the world to see Szash's moves coming and react long before those moves were effective, had let the Sword of Light slice through every barrier with ease. But it had not, quite, been enough.

When Szash started building her attack spell, Hayate and the Sword both began casting counters, a shield in her case, Sunspike in the Sword's case. But when Szash uttered those unbelievable words, Hayate could not believe it. No one could call down a l'Arc en Ciel, the weapon system was a massive construction that required a starship's power plant. Sara's Armageddon spell might be able to match it, through the amplification and resonance effects, but Szash was no Deva mage.

It was possible it was a bluff, but Hayate realized she could not take the chance. She was between Szash and Hong Kong – closely enough, at least, given l'Arc en Ciel's blast radius. Her children were in the strike zone, her family and friends, and thousands of mundane infantrymen who had no concept what was about to happen. Hayate had to find a way to stop that spell, and even as Szash unleashed precisely what she had announced, Hayate put herself squarely in the blast's path.

She reached deep into Sara's bequest, and the Sword's archive responded with its usual instant surety, "Hellgate."

00000

Szash expected anything, up to and including the noble but futile response of trying to block the l'Arc en Ciel. But the spell, a relic of Warlords Era, was the penultimate offensive magic. Only by tapping into the generators in Al Hanthis tasked specifically for her use could Szash cast it. No one _but_ the general of the Guard could slave that many generators together, and she did not even consciously know the spell, it was buried in her implants' programming, triggered by codes she, Gali, and Eri shared, codes they had only released to her moments before teleporting to Hong Kong.

The l'Arc en Ciel formed perfectly, and the power of it blasted out fit to end the city below, and more besides. The beam was huge, larger than any tower in the city, so bright it made the sun seem dark. It left her weak in the knees, being the conduit for energies so far beyond human capabilities. But the spell was cast, the first time she had actually used it, and she started to understand why the Conclave of Masters so feared the General of the Guard. It felt so good, so powerful, casting that spell, like she was unstoppable, untouchable.

_Careful,_ she warned herself, _you're starting to sound like Yosho on a bad day._

An oddity in the beam path caught her attention a second later, and then any sense of invincibility faded. The l'Arc en Ciel beam was collecting in a point, drawing in to a smaller and smaller area, but not progressing any further. When the titanic blast finally ended, there was a moment of stillness as the last energies faded into the point.

Standing at that point, held in the air as much by her body-guard and a man in white as by her magic, one hand ending in a whirling blackness that slowly faded, was Hayate Yagami.

_'You may have your city behind you,'_ Hayate told her, _'but I have faith in the universe that loves me. It appears the universe loves me more than your city supports you, General. Who is not up to taking whom, I wonder?'_

Szash almost answered, but a wave of white crashed over her, and her implants went berserk. The world went mad around her, whirling insanely, and it took her precious seconds to realize her magic was simply _gone_, and that the wind in her ears was her falling from over three thousand meters up towards a very rocky looking island.

_'Gali!'_ She could not tell if her mental shout reached him, if anything was working, _'Pull us out, all of us! Emergency retrieval!'_

Eri managed to fall close enough to be reassuring, and past the nausea and generalized pain of whatever the hell had just happened, Szash managed to flatten herself out, increasing her body's drag through the air. It would not slow her enough to survive the fall, but it might buy Gali the time to react.

She never felt the teleport take hold, but she definitely noticed the transition from Hong Kong airspace to Al Hanthis retrieval bay when she slammed into the protective shields. They absorbed the impact of her velocity, and sound of more people thudding into the 'soft' barriers at least let her know someone shared her pain.

She took a minute to herself, catching her breath and recovering her wits. The shock of seeing Hayate absorb that blast, then abruptly loosing her magic and connection to Al Hanthis, was quite the depressing counterpoint to how much she had been enjoying the battle. Szash was used to challenges, but this was the first time she had ever faced someone who was her magical equal, but did not outrank her, or have more seniority. This had been the first time she had faced an equal in real combat, and the ending could hardly be called decisive.

She was just thinking of getting to her feet when she realized that the commotion around her was not what it should have been. There should have been calls for healers, groans from the injured and those retrieved so roughly, post-battle grousing and boasting. Instead, the shouting sounded like damage control parties, and there was an acrid stench in the air. Getting her bearings, she found the retrieval room a disaster area, kinetic absorption shields flaring and flickering, circuits arcing under damaged panels, and not nearly enough members of the Five-oh-First picking themselves up off the floor.

She swore once, then dove into the chaos, Eri at her heels. She had to get the people here clear of the drop-routes for incoming survivors, and the faster she got people out, the faster the injured could get to the healers and the technicians could get in to make repairs. Figuring out what had happened could wait.

00000

Natalia's hand was shaking a little as she fit the key in the apartment door's lock, but it was a familiar routine, and she managed to get the door open. Gesturing for the Protector who had accompanied her form the hospital to follow, she walked into the apartment. "Babushka? It's Natalia."

She heard a chair shift in the kitchen, then her grandmother's surprised voice, "Little Natalia? What are you doing here? I thought you were going to Hong Kong?"

"I did, Babushka," Natalia told her, "but plans have changed."

Her grandmother came out of the kitchen, a little unsteady, looking confused, but eyes still sharp. She took a long hard look at Natalia's escort, and confusion faded into a frown. "Natalia? Who is this, and why are you here? Did Hong Kong turn out that poorly?"

Natalia flinched, remembering Cid-chan's collapse, Niranjana's panicked attempt to save herself, but pushed the pain aside. "It turned out about how I expected, worse than it should have. Listen, Babushka, we need to go. You can't stay here anymore, Babushka, it isn't safe. I've made arrangements for us, all of us."

"Go?" Her grandmother actually laughed at that, "Go where? Little Natalia, I'm not going anywhere! I raised your father in this apartment, I raised you in this apartment, why would I want to go anywhere? How could it not be safe? No one comes in this building, no one here has anything worth making trouble over, and even if they did, I've known everyone in this building for decades! You know that."

Natalia shook her head, "Babushka, the people who will come for you soon are not street thugs or government agents. They will float through the walls and take you, no one the wiser. Please. We have to go. I've made arrangements, but we're pressed for time."

Her grandmother's eyes widened slightly, then fixed on her escort. "Made arrangements?" There was no joking in her voice now, just growing fear, "Made what arrangements? Little Natalia, what have you done?"

Natalia flinched, "What I had to do, Babushka, for you and for Sasha. Al Hanthis will help him, better than any of the so-called doctors here, more than Hayate ever tried to. They'll help you, too. But we can't stay here, Babushka. We have to go. The only place safe for us is Al Hanthis. They'll..."

"No."

The abrupt denial hurt, and shook Natalia. "Babushka?"

Her grandmother shook her head, "I am not leaving my home, Natalia. Al Hanthis, that is the city, yes? The fascists who conquered Egypt for being in the way? Why would you have anything to do with them? Sasha? He would never accept this, whatever it is! Why would you think I would want to give up my entire life, just to live a little longer?"

"It's a chance to get him back! To have our family back!"

"At the cost of you? Of the life I've already lived? At the cost of helping these fascists? Natalia this is _wrong_. Sasha would not want this, not for him, not for you."

Natalia had to struggle not to cry, as she realized her grandmother was rejecting her. _I should have expected this, planned for it,_ Natalia realized, _but I can't leave her here. The government would hurt her, even if Hayate won't._ Calling up her magic, she started to wrap her grandmother in a binding, when her escort's hand clamped painfully on her shoulder.

In surprisingly clear Russian he told her, "She has declined our offer, Adept. She has that right. Your brother has been retrieved, it is time for us to depart."

This time, Natalia could not push the pain and fear aside. Her attempt to save her brother and her grandmother was falling apart. Her grandmother was choosing to die, preferred to abandon her just when she found a way to save everyone...

Natalia did not even notice her stance shifting, her face smoothing into a smirk. She barely noticed the odd shimmer the world took on, that sense of remove, as Precia settled into place. "So be it, Mother Morisovitch. You choose to reject my attempt to save you, so it appears I must let you pass from this world. Thank you for all you have done, I will be sure to remember you to Sasha when he wakes." Then she turned and strolled out the door, ignoring the shocked old woman behind her, and the screaming, sobbing voice in the back of her mind.

There was no time for such histrionics, with her goal so close to hand.

00000

Maunders knew as soon as the blasted machine triggered that the EMP spell was formed wrong. That was not surprising – Hughes had cooked it up, and while she had helped, he was worlds away a better mage than she was. All of the underlying 'why' and 'how' had been beyond her, the subtle details that made it work like it was supposed to. The spell should have left her completely unaffected, but instead had affected her terribly. It may even have fed back on itself.

Flailing weakly on the ground, trying to overcome the aching weakness and nausea left by the EMP spell, the terrifying lack of any feel of magic around her, she knew it had worked partly. The sounds of battle had changed, roar of busters and flaring of shields disappearing while gunfire increased. But the whole point had been to get away, and now she could barely move, while her people were no doubt running for cover. EMP's effects would fade, and she had no idea how quickly given the failed nature of the spell, so Thorngrave was no doubt falling back even then, taking her hope of survival with him.

The scuff of boot on concrete distracted her, from her struggle to move, and she managed to look up. She expected a Guard mage, ready to kill her or worse.

What she found was worse.

Early was scuffed up and a little bloody, but not too badly injured. He had his rifle slung over his chest, his right arm hanging loose at his side, pistol in hand. There was no tension in him, even as he stood well out of cover and stared down at her, just a flat sort of consideration.

Maunders knew precisely what he was there for, and actually laughed, sort of, seeing the irony of being executed by one of the men she had just saved. _At least Hughes won't have to shoot me himself,_ she thought. _The old man always was a little soft._ "Should... have... shot you... yesterday," she told Early.

Early quirked an eyebrow, then nodded easily. "Yup, probably should've. Not the first time I've heard that, probably won't be the last, either. Sorry, Maunders," he raised the pistol, "at least you got to go out fighting."

Maunders watched the pistol come into line with her eyes, and sheer stubbornness made her reach for her own sidearm. She managed to get her hand moving, spastic twitches that were at least in the right direction, glaring at Jubal the whole time. She watched his eyes, saw only the slightest of emotion in them, and that pissed her off more than anything else. She deserved respect, at least, rage or fear, something, but he was just doing what he did, nothing more, nothing less, enjoying it just a little.

There was a flicker of movement just as Jubal pulled the trigger, and something white-hot snatched at the side of her head, wrenching it around and removing Jubal from her view. When she managed to force her head back around, Jubal was on his knees with his face in the ground, gun-arm twisted around straight up behind him, pistol nowhere in sight. Holding the former gun-hand was a man in solid black.

"That one will be far too useful to my musume for you to be allowed to slake you bloodlust, Early," Takashi stated, then pointed off to his left. "Arlain, you are in charge of this scene. I've got questions for Thorngrave, you can have him back when I'm done with him. I'll be taking Maunders as well. For now, clean up this mess and start sweeping for hold outs and injured. And get this _thing_," he shoved Jubal sideways, "away from me before I decide to do something permanent to it."

Maunders could not see Arlain, but Law appeared a couple seconds later and dragged an obviously disoriented Jubal off. Takashi sneered at them, then stalked over and crouched next to Maunders just in her line of view. "That had to be one of the most insane stunts I have ever seen," he said. "Congratulations, you impressed me. Jubal didn't, but I expected that. Stupid man, shooting his own comrade for saving his life. That's one of the major problems you Circle types have, you can't even trust each other."

"Should have... let him," Maunders said. "Trial now."

Takashi shook his head, "If the Circles attempt to harm you, Hayate will take you in. You belong to her, now, as well as the Circles."

"Only takes... the willing," Maunders countered. "I'm Circle."

Takashi chuckled and shook his head, "Stubborn crazy. You remind me of me. Come on, I'm putting you someplace safe until Hayate has time for you. You should be up and mobile in a little while, but don't go poking your nose anywhere it shouldn't. I've cleaned up a little since my last visitor, and there are some things in there you aren't qualified to know about."

He put a hand on her shoulder, and with a sickening wrench teleported both of them elsewhere. She expected some sort of hell-dimension, or a secret room in Hayate's school, or the Bureau ships in orbit, all of which amounted to the same things. What she got was a plain stone room, no windows beyond arrow-slits, basic furnishings, and nothing remotely modern, not even a light. Light came from a glowing pinprick floating at the center of the ceiling.

Takashi left her lying on a mattress, and a few minutes later a woman Maunders had never met came in. "Just relax, Miss. My name is Hypatia, Keeper of the Tomes. The Lord asked me to see to your needs while you are here. You disrupted your own linker core, yes? And a gash to the side of your head, I see. You should recover from the instability in a few hours, the head wound should heal well enough once it's been tended, which I'll see to now."

"Where...?"

"The Hellblade. The Lord has been doing some rebuilding recently, and created my sister and I to assist and to keep watch over his old homeworld." She smiled, briefly, "And to help keep an eye on his daughter, truth be told. Miss Hayate is apparently quite the problem child. Just relax, Miss," Hypatia leaned over her head, and began gently checking at the throbbing wound on the side of her head, "We'll take care of you."

Maunders did not really have much choice in the matter. Her head hurt twice over, her neck was screaming, and the arm she had gotten moving was almost as bad. She could feel her magic fluctuating, breakfast kept trying for a rematch, and she was trapped in a monster's sword. She was proud of her strength of will and toughness of mind, proud of her history of completing difficult assignments against tough odds. But she was also smart enough to recognize when to cut and run, and did not resist when Hypatia put her to sleep.

00000

Yosho returned to Al Hanthis in time to join the Conclave for the end of the battle. When the other Masters rose, debating what, precisely, had cut the monitoring feeds, though, Yosho remained seated. The Conclave had officially gathered informally to observe all the Guards' operations that day. Unofficially, everyone was there to see the attack on Hong Kong, eager to see the best the rebels could offer, for the thrill of battle at a safe remove. When Gali informed them that the Five-oh-First had been retrieved and the assault ended, most rose and left, chattering.

Yosho had greater patience, however, and was curious what damage had been done to Hong Kong. It took ten minutes for satellite imagery from the locals' networks to be retrieved and displayed, and longer for analysis to begin and be displayed for the Conclave. It was worth the wait as, whatever had happened to end the fighting, it appeared to have been just as bad for the rebels as for the Guard. By the time he left, Yosho was cautiously optimistic.

Journeyman Turo fell into step behind him as he left, but fell back a little as another Conclave member took up station to Yosho's right. "Disappointing, wouldn't you say? I would have expected better from Szash, especially given that she attempted the l'Arc en Ciel."

Yosho cocked an eyebrow, "Disappointing, Master Willan? How so?"

Willan was one of the more political Conclave members, fingers in every pie but not directly responsible for anything. Because of that, he represented a collection of factions and interests, some of them opposing, and was generally considered a facilitator if not quite a real power in himself.

The older man shrugged, "Well, Szash's plan was to destroy Hong Kong, but the city – looked like several cities, to me – is still there, essentially undamaged. Then there was her failed spell at the end..." Willan actually clucked disapprovingly as he shook his head. "I know she is young, but she has been Master Adept and General long enough to at least manage a proper spell. Some of us are beginning to wonder if, perhaps, it is time to look for a... more seasoned hand, in this time of trouble."

Yosho considered those comments for a few moments, just long enough to make clear he was considering them, then asked, "You believe Szash failed to cast l'Arc en Ciel?"

"Obviously. Had she cast it properly, it would have destroyed that city in the blink of an eye. Admittedly, not something we want to do often, but a demonstration or two would be quite effective. I have wondered why she did not simply employ that spell, now I know – she cannot actually achieve it."

Yosho shook his head, "You were watching Szash, Master Willan, when you should have been watching the Yagami woman. Szash cast l'Arc en Ciel perfectly, better than textbook. I'll admit, I'm not sure I could have managed such a strong casting were I in her place. But did you not see what the Yagami woman did in response?" Willan, eyes narrowing in consideration, shook his head. "Admittedly, it was not obvious, but I was watching the more esoteric sensor readings, not the imagery, trying to get a feel for how her magic works.

"What she did, Master Adept, was open a small, carefully controlled, and time-limited, portal. A portal directly to the Void. Something not even we dare attempt save under the most carefully controlled circumstances, and even then we have difficulty closing those portals. Yet Yagami just... tossed it off, in the heat of battle. No, Willan, Szash did not make a mistake. She was precisely right to attack Hong Kong as she did, to distract our enemies and to learn as much as possible about them. A war is not a matter of battles and victories, it is about knowing enough of your enemy to defeat them before they show up for the battles. Knowing them well enough to eliminate every advantage and strength they have, to exploit every weakness, until they surrender or are eliminated themselves. Hong Kong has given us a great deal of information. As will the next target, and the next. General Szash will retain my complete support, especially given how well her plans have worked to date.

"Besides, it is not wise to change commanders in the middle of a conflict. The rebels would use the delay to damaging effect. Better to leave Szash in charge of the Guard until she truly makes an irrecoverable mistake."

Willan frowned, but nodded slowly. "I think I see your points, Lord Protector, though I am not certain you are correct. Thank you, I had not considered what Yagami had done. L'Arc en Ciel is supposed to be unstoppable, after all. Hmm, yes, that does bear thinking on. Well," he shrugged and smiled, "on to other things, I guess? I understand you have... unique information, on the rebels."

Yosho cocked his head slightly, then allowed, "I may have more information than some."

"That would not include medical information, would it? Genetic information?"

Yosho's curiosity was definitely piqued now. Willan was a political animal, he should not have been interested in information on the rebels unless they had already won the war. "It's possible. May I ask why?"

"Well, an associate was doing some historical research recently, wondering about the last time the Conclave faced war such as this. She came across a few notations from even further back, regarding the Warlords Era, before the Masters of Vision formed the first Conclave. There were some interesting things in there, things we might be able to use, but they rely on what we now know is genetic information."

"You are not thinking of releasing an engineered disease, are you? That has been studied, extensively, and repeatedly rejected by the Conclave. It is simply too difficult to control a virus or bacterium once it leaves the lab. Mutations are too easy, and genetically targeted viruses adapt within days to target other hosts."

Willan waved that aside, "Oh, yes, yes, I know all that, and that wasn't where I was going. Horrible idea, that. No, this is a purely magical tactic, one that could remove a great deal of the rebels' leadership. Blood Penance, it was called."

Relived Willan was not suggesting something that would force Yosho to arrest him on the spot, the Lord Protector asked, "Would you be willing to send me what you have found on this?"

"Certainly Lord Protector. Do you think you have the information necessary, though?"

"I couldn't say until I have seen the specifics for this 'Blood Penance', Master Adept."

"Ah, well," Willan looked mightily pleased, "Then I'll have it sent right over to you. It should be waiting for you when you get back to your office. Good day, Lord Protector."

Yosho watched the other man leave, then gave Turo a questioning look. "You wanted to ask something, Journeyman?" Turo looked uncomfortable, and started to shake his head, so Yosho held up a hand. "Turo, you should know by now that I don't punish people for asking questions. At a guess, you are curious about some aspect of the recent conversation. Ask."

"Well... Lord Protector, I was curious... I thought you wanted General Szash replaced. The two of you... well, sir, you both clash frequently. Would it not be easier to have a General more sympathetic to the Protectors?"

Yosho shook his head, and resumed walking. "No, Journeyman, it would not. The Protectors and the Guard are separate for a reason. No one wants another Warlord, not even Szash and I, for all our frequent mutual accusations. It is for that same reason that the Protectors and the Guard are so often in competition, so often antagonistic, and why no Lord Protector has ever served in the Guard, and no General has ever served as a Protector.

"But in this case... you are right that Szash and I are adversaries, in the Conclave. That is the point, though – _in the Conclave_. Szash is too young, too straight forward, to understand just how delicate things are in the Conclave, how carefully we must move, how political power works. It's not her fault, the very personality traits which blind her to the Conclave's subtleties make her an excellent General, and she will come to understand the Conclave in a few decades, when she has proper experience.

"The twist is, she is an _excellent _General. Look at her plan for conquering Homeworld – it's a brilliant exercise of limited resources to achieve maximum results. It is risky, yes, and highly dependent on keeping momentum, but she has already secured enough territory, people, and resources to vastly improve our security and comfort. The Guard loves her, and her going to Hong Kong personally will solidify that loyalty. Then there is experienced.

"I will be honest, she became General mostly because no one else remotely qualified wanted the post. We were stuck in the Void with no way home, who was there to defend against? So she became the youngest General of the Guard in Al Hanthis' history. She's still young for the post, technically, but she has been General for twelve years. The Guard knows her, she knows them, and the entire plan is hers.

"No, as General, Szash has my complete and willing support. It is in the Conclave and matters outside the Guard, such as diplomacy, espionage, and manipulation of our enemy, that I attempt to limit Szash's authority and power. She is an excellent General, but she has yet to develop the skills to be anything else."

"I think I understand, sir," Turo said slowly. "You are letting her be what she is best at, while protecting her and Al Hanthis from her inexperience."

Yosho smiled, glad he had taken the young journeyman on as a protégé of sorts. He was young, and not 'brilliant', but he had the sort of loyal intelligence that was far more valuable. "Precisely, Turo. Now, however, think about this. Why did Master Adept Willan offer to send me the Blood Penance information, instead of asking for the genetic data to use the Penance himself? Something to consider, while we look it over."

00000

_"While many people would claim, in the immediate aftermath, that the battle of Hong Kong was ended with a nuclear exchange, that is patently false. Many pre-War buildings remain in Hong Kong, and there were no lingering radiation effects, not to mention the survivors! The claim is understandable, however. Master Maunders earned her nickname of 'Mad Maudlin' not for claiming a device in spite of her upbringing, but for making her first use of that device a particularly overblown rendition of Hughes' EMP spell. Also for the annoyingly angst-ridden way she publicly reacted to it immediately afterward, but that's secondary to my current point._

_"EMP is still not a very widely known spell, because most mages are justifiably terrified of it, and both the Empire and Bureau treat the spell as a Class One Lost Logia in its own right. Hughes' original version would be sufficient to cripple any mage caught in the blast zone for several minutes, even device mages are disabled for several seconds. With a device powering it, instead of an un-enhanced mage, the effect Hughes created to clear a large room or small building was significantly greater. _

_"From the position half a kilometer from Hong Kong Island's north shore, Maunder's EMP spell reached out in a perfect sphere almost to the old British territorial border. Every mage in that area, __every__ mage, was instantly stripped of their power, most rendered unconscious. While Hayate and Takashi regained their power in mere minutes, and outside sources managed emergency teleports within a few seconds, her friends and students required an average of thirty minutes, and most mages would not regain the ability to call on or control their magic for several hours. For the entire course of the war, Hong Kong would remain the worst day for Circle casualties, simply because of how many in the wolfpacks lost power at altitude, and how many mages generating the wolfpacks were violently severed from the rituals. Beside that, the peripheral damage to the city's electrical grid and the PLA's equipment was negligible, not even to the level of a true, nuclear, EMP."_

– the Dark Witch, personal historian to the First Emperor, as quoted in a live-broadcast interview on Founding Day, Year Thirty.

00000

Author's Note 1: 'Ichigo' means both 'first born son' and 'strawberry' in Japanese, and both are used as names, the former for boys, the latter for girls. Hence, Toushiro's nickname for Ichigo, 'Berry', is calling him 'girlie' and yet is a perfectly legitimate shortening of the name... sort of. Also, don't remember who guessed it, but 'Mad Maudlin' is not Allison, it's Maunders.

Author's Note 2: the l'Arc en Ciel spell Szash used is almost exactly the same as the Bureau cannon of the same name, and fills much the same role – it is Al Hanthis' version of a WMD. While Al Hanthis uses it as a spell, the Bureau built a cannon to replicate it, primarily because no human can generate that much power (except maybe Hayate, Takashi, & Kriegsen). Story-relevant details will be in the next few chapters as Hayate & Co recover from the battle, but the short version is, the Al Hanthis mages' implants grant them extra power not only through their linker cores, but also through power relayed from artificial generators in Al Hanthis.

00000

Tombadgerlock: Chrono may not be ice-aspected himself, but w/ Durandall he comes closer than anyone else, so... shrug close enough for government work:). As for Hayate & Reinforce-Zwei, do remember that the entire Deva series is based on Nanoha and Nanoha As, almost exclusively. The only parts of StrikerS or the mangas I have or will use is the Bureau's mage-rank structure, and I may (BIG maybe) use the existence of non-intelligent devices. I wasn't entirely sure about the opening scene last chapter, as it felt a stilted and repetitive, but at the same time getting into a device's thought process was too much fun.

Lady Sekhmet Ka: I'm glad you liked Saraswati's PoV, and I was waiting to unleash Megan's dragon form... that one's going to be all sorts of fun.

Baughn: You are right, Natalia's actions are stupid, but then that describes pretty much the entire human race, so she's in good company. Whether or not Yosho can follow through will play a part in the future chapters, though, good and bad. As for the AI controls, call it a personal theory – anyone building an AI with the sort of power the devices display is going to put in safeguards, and take it as given that ALL the devices have similar controls, except _possibly_ the Sword of Light, the Hellblade, and Panzerfaust. The 'command protocols' are similar in purpose to the multi-key coded locks used on nuclear weapons, if not as extreme, and exist for much the same reason. Remember, both the Bureau and the Circles have historical experience (and the Bureau has _current_ experience!) with out-of-control magically empowered machines doing incredible damage. You can talk about making the AI want something or not want something, but AI's by their very nature will grow and change – look at what Raising Heart & Bardiche ask for in As. Whether AI works that way or not is immaterial, in the face of justifiable concerns by those who make & regulate devices, though I will admit that, as I see them, the 'command protocls' are rather basic and brute-force approach. On the other hand, look how well all those safeguards and limiters worked when the AI noticed them... There will be some severe repercussions for Niranjana, though she's not at 'terminator' levels – I honestly don't think she has it in her to actually kill anyone. Allina might, but not 'Jana. I left out airpower due to two roughly equal factors – I am far more familiar with infantry and armored tactics & China's PLA capabilities than I am with air tactics and China's air power, and air-cover was supposed to be provided by the Circles & students. As for a warthog, that's actually not such a good idea in a city given how close they would have to get to go after Seed – flying a helo in between skyscrapers is doable but hideously dangerous when they're almost hovering, doing it with a jet aircraft at a couple hundred miles an hour is asking to crash. Aircraft would also be more vulnerable than infantry to the Guard's mages, as they would make big targets. You will see aircraft later, once the militaries involved can be confident they won't be throwing the aircraft away uselessly. Regarding Cid-chan, I came up with a brilliant plan for what was (and is) going to happen to her, and then remembered how much I picked on her in Academy Blues, so yeah, I feel like a heel. But she made too perfect a target for Natalia's betrayal – not out front where they would be under the teachers' eyes, not a fighter in the usual sense, sweet and kind and the sort of person that everyone likes. I'm not done with her yet, though, and while I will say the Book's linker-core stealing abilities are gone, Shamal has quite a few tricks up her sleeve.

Kell Shock: Saraswati (and HAL, they're programmed almost precisely the same) is the single most powerful device AI in the series. Other devices are not, quite, self-aware (Raising Heart and Bardiche are almost there, in my interpretation), whereas Saraswati and HAL are, with some kinks. On the other hand, Saraswati's 'virtuoso performance' has some serious drawbacks, which are mostly for next chapter. Natalia was already prepping her teleport when Shamal's teleport began, so it was more a matter of lucky timing (for Natalia, at least) than skill. Megan's real issue with her war form is that, for all the work she put into it, the Al Hanthis mages have put much much more into refining the Seed. Her ability to shift into a mythical form does have its drawbacks, but I'm a big fan of dragons of all sorts. Now her and Takashi, that would be an interesting fight. Natalia's rank in Al Hanthis is actually somewhat inflated, due to her device making her magic unique (by Al Hanthis' standards), and also due to the intelligence information she will (hopefully) provide. As for Cidela's strength – all Yosho listed as a price was 'the strongest', which can be interpreted any number of ways. Cidela has the strongest linker core among the students, and is the only student who's raw potential matches Nanohas – but where Nanoha has all sorts of skills and natural aptitude for combat, Cidela doesn't. As for armies – go ahead, exhaust yourself fighting Cidela's defenders, and when you're exhausted from your efforts, Cidela's magic will leave her friends fresh as daisies. When the situation gets critical, Cidela with Hippocrates can roughly double the effectiveness of a combat force. As for Maunders... I have plans for her, yes I do:).

MissGardenia: The Battle of Hong Kong was supposed to be the biggest collection of twists and surprises. There are a couple more coming, related to how this will end but nothing quite as extreme as Natalia's betrayal. Natalia herself I'm conflicted about – I've been planning this since the start of the story (almost made her the Big Bad, at one point) but I positively hate traitors, real or fictional. It's my fault, and I already know the price she is going to pay, but nonetheless she betrayed the heroes. Regarding the computers Saraswati accessed, if you're still confused, here's a short-hand list: Primary is Niranjana, Secondary is Allina; HAL is, obviously, Allina's device; Shiva is the Bureau ship in orbit enforcing the interdict; Asura is Fate's old command which is 'conducting shake-down patrols' in near-by space; Yggdrasil is the AI that runs Hayate's computer systems at the school; the Infinity Library is, naturally, the Bureau's main library that Yuuno ran; Beowulf Brazilia is Allina's pseudo-super-computer in her parents' basement.

CrimsonDX: I was trying to be as subtle as I could with clues of Natalia's nascent betrayal, but was apparently too subtle. You're the only reviewer who spotted anything. The AB chapter 19 comment was from Li, but he was thinking about the student he was overflying at the time (he was airborne over Russia on his way to brief the Circle Lords, during the winter break). The scene I thought would raise everyone's flags was the device activation – everyone else had their device activations presented from their viewpoint, but Natalia's was seen only from Allison's viewpoint. I hope she'll live up to your expectations as an antagonist, though as the above scene shows, she's not entirely comfortable with her new role. There'll be quite a bit of trouble for her before her story is resolved.

Skyfall v2.0: The hints about Natalia were very subtle, but possibly too much so. As I told CrimsonDX the biggest give-away was that her device activation was seen through Allison's eyes, not hers, but I've done the same thing in other scenes as well – shown traumatic events involving her only through others' eyes. Then there's the Precia persona, and her continued use of the Al Hazred/Al Hanthis elements in her magic. The reactions to her are going to be complicated, and she was close to her fellows, if not as close as they are to each other – remember poor Ichigo? Manders' situation is definitely going to be interesting (I've been looking forward to the above exchange for about fifteen chapters now:), especially when her nickname starts spreading around. You'll have to wait a bit longer to find out about Niranjana's injury & Saraswati's repairs, I'm afraid, but the term 'hack job' comes to mind – Saraswati's work is nowhere nearly as pretty as the terminator, or Al Hanthis' implants. As for big fights, here's one fight, and a partial illustration of one reason I'm leery of them – Hayate, Szash, Nanoha, Takashi, and possibly a few others are quite literally throwing around world-shattering power, which is simply difficult to write well. As for the Takamachis vs. Szash fight – just wait, just wait. I admit I probably should have given the fight some space, to build up the competition/rivalry, but had too many other things going on. I've got their last fight planned for the the end of the war. Regarding Laura's disappointing attitude – I'm glad your opinion of her dropped, it was supposed to. Laura's an incredibly gifted warrior and mage, but her fight with Li severely traumatized her, and she did screw up over Hong Kong. While she is mostly better since February, she has issues about taking a life which will probably last throughout her lifetime, much as Hayate and Takashi both have issues about family. It was not that Laura did not realize people were dying, or that death is part of warfare, her problem is a fear of taking a life herself. Remember she wants to be better than that, good enough that she never has to kill again. Akira showed her she is getting there, which is better than the probable outcome had he not interfered. Her 'interfering' with Akira was precisely what she was supposed to be doing, just not quite in the manner or location she was supposed to be doing it.

Taeniaea: Thank you!

Jade Eye's: Saraswati's changes were nowhere close to what I understand Subaru is like – remember, it was mostly nervous system damage, not skeletal or muscle damage. Niranjana's situation is drastic, but details will have to wait for a future chapter:). I also have plans for how people will react to Megan now, but those will be background for the most part, though you are right about Hayate's reaction to any shrines being set up.

MaZe-Pallas: Thanks for the compliment. But I'd bet you went and wrote that wikipedia entry yourself just to win the argument, didn't you? Admit it! It's a conspiracy with you and A Cannon! I'm on to you! /end sarcasm/ Okay, okay, in all seriousness, I'm big enough to admit when I'm wrong, Takamachi it is. I'll have to go back and edit prior chapters, but I may not bother with Path of Vengeance or Academy Blues. Call it a relic of the fan subs. I'm not giving up Velka or Raging Heart, though, I'm deeply and personally attached to both names:).

A Cannon: Glad you've liked it so far, and my apologies about the delays. Artifact of how I write, I'm afraid. The harder I try to focus on one story, the fewer words appear on the screen. You and MaZe-Pallas are conspiring against me, aren't you? I know it, don't try to deny it... /end sarcasm/. Yeah, okay, I hate admitting when I'm wrong, but in this case I'll own up. Takamachi it is.

AluciusDawn: Last chapter was quick because I was trying to work on something else, so naturally all the inspiration and drive was for this story. The Saraswati section last chapter was originally less about saving Niranjana than simply looking at how the devices think, though Saraswati's odd for a device. The three injured students aren't out of the woods yet, and I think some people are going to be angry with me for what I have planned. If Szash wowed you before, how does the above work? There will be a Takamachis vs. Szash battle later, but I have that planned for the climax of the war. As I've mentioned, I don't consider StrikerS to be canon for the Deva series, simply because I don't want to have to go back and re-write Path of Vengeance and the first third of Academy Blues to fit. But Nanoha and Yuuno in As were already ridiculous, and you're right, Yuuno managed it without a device. As for Hayate's power – she essentially created and dispelled a null-space and used it to soak up a l'Arc en Ciel. Admittedly, that was almost it for her, but she did it. The Seed are very tough and smart, their designed to be, as the (probable) next Side Story will show, but they do have severe limitations. There are some repercussions from Megan's new form, physical, magical, and social, but I'm not sure how to work all of them in yet. You are right though, that the support elements of the named characters has been hit hardest, though Maunders' EMP was not fun for any mage caught in it. As for Akira, in spite of my original intentions for him to be Takashi's inexcusable pet monster, he's turned out to be more interesting than I planned, so confusion about liking or loathing him is perfectly understandable. Personally, I dislike him, except when I don't.

elspaco: Glad you've enjoyed the stories so far, and thanks for the review! To take your three points in order, here we go. From Chapter 03) You are right that that Bureau has no real jurisdiction over Terra (it's been mentioned before), but Chrono and Lindy demonstrated in the first Nanoha series that the Bureau will intervene to prevent or contain a dimensional dislocation. The Circles' creation of a massive null constituted one such justification, and Al Hanthis represents, to the Bureau, a cataclysmic dislocation just waiting to happen. So while it is rather dictatorial, the Bureau would intervene, if not for other political considerations. From Chapter 14) The 'outside Nevada' quote is, admittedly, stolen from a friend. He said it almost word for word in an RPG years ago, and is a fond memory (though his punking off resulted in the party being sent up for execution instead of let off with a warning. From Chapter 26) I like Liu as well, and he'll be showing up later when Chinese troops show up again. Yussef's comment about Lanzhou was insulting, yes, but also questionably necessary. Remember there was a Circle Revenant there as well, so the reminder was aimed at both of them. Also, Liu was pretty quick to reject Yussef's assistance out of hand, which was insulting. Could Yussef have done better? Certainly. But he needs experience, like all the students. As for Jubal, well, he's Jubal Early, based on the Firefly character he's named for. I haven't seen or read Generation Kill, and won't. Everything I've heard about it, and its author, tells me it's not something I would be able to stand.

Rathmun: Thanks for the compliment, and the info. Regarding Cidela's name, you may be right, but I've only ever seen Ne/Nee translated as son/daughter of. Then there's the fact that Cidela uses 'Ni', not Ne/Nee. So, call it a faux-similar Velka term meaning 'child of'. As for the Imperial Family's place-holder name, yours is the third (or possibly a repeat of the first) that I found, years ago. Thing is, when I went to back-check it, the name had changed to Ha-something, and then disappeared from Wikipedia completely. Given Wikipedia's reputation on real-world facts, and the fact that I can't find it anywhere else, I came up with the following in my notes for Noriko, though it turned out to be less important than I thought it would: The name 'Asegawa' is a polite social fiction. Noriko is the daughter of Prince Akishino, granddaughter of the Emperor, and a minor member of the Imperial Family. Asegawa Noriko, on the other hand, is the daughter of wealthy parents who chose to send their daughter to a remote private school due to a unique opportunity. This avoids embarrassing the Imperial Family should Hayate's school prove a failure, and protects Hayate's school from the sort of scrutiny and intrusions which follow the Imperial Family everywhere. The media and people of Japan are well aware that Princess Noriko and Asegawa Noriko are the same person, but so long as the Imperial Family maintains the fiction, the media and people are obliged to observe it as well.


	30. 29 The Truth of Pyrrhus

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-29 – The Truth of Pyrrhus-

Basic recovery from the end of the battle of Hong Kong took the rest of the day, and well into that night. The PLA soldiers were in the mood to celebrate what they saw as a great victory, and for all the damage the city had suffered, it was a victory, especially for them. They had suffered close to twenty percent losses, terrible casualties for any battle, but they held the city, and despite the pre-battle demolition and heavy weapons employed, Hong Kong was remarkably intact for a battle involving such titanic forces. While there were countless shattered windows and doors, torn up streets, and a number of fires, the only demolitions had been those deliberately undertaken by the defenders, which were relatively contained. Compared to the utter devastation Szash had apparently planned, the city was practically untouched.

Hayate's kids mostly recovered from the EMP within an hour or so, though Laura remained badly disoriented most of the day and under observation the next. Aria sent the uninjured back to Hong Kong once they had recovered, to help with the post-battle tasks. Beginning to clean up the mess, locating the injured left by the initial retreat, and tracking down the stray Seed that burrowed their way into the city's basements and sewers when the rest retreated, took Hayate and her students until well into the night of the battle, fortunately for her nerves, and they stayed once more in their hotel.

Hayate managed to avoid having to tell them of Natalia's betrayal through the day after the attack as well, however much she felt like a coward for it. She did not want to have to tell them, did not want to have to hurt them like that, especially after the elation of their victory. The fact that they could not afford to take time to grieve immediately, that there was so much work to be done, gave her a good excuse, and she used that excuse ruthlessly. So it was not until they had returned to the campus, leaving the Bureau volunteers in Hong Kong, returned to meet the first years who had literally watched Natalia's attack on Cid-chan, that she finally told the second years.

Their reactions were worse than she had expected. She remembered her Knights' tales from February, Fate's stories, and expected something like that. But February had been an inexplicable though half-expected attack from an outside source. This had been equally inexplicable, but it was no unknown faceless enemy. Their classmate and friend, someone they _knew_, had tried to kill two of them, and the second years had never even thought about it. There was no quiet waiting, no fierce determination to set things right. Her children burst into tears, tried to argue against it, rejected and denied that it had happened, concocted ridiculous and fanciful justifications, overcome by pain and fear she could understand, but did not know how to fight.

Hayate had seen betrayal, of course, both in action and its results. But the closest she had ever come in her own experience was when the Lieze twins took her Knights from her while wearing Nanoha's and Fate's faces. That situation had been resolved within an hour, however, in the best possible way. The situation with Kriegsen and Takashi had been at a remove, a case she was personally involved in but not a party to. This was different, true and utter betrayal. Natalia had been among the quietest and most withdrawn of the second years, especially since the summer, but she had been one of them. One of Hayate's children had tried to kill another, and betrayed everything Hayate tried to teach her. Had she not been so worried for her students and Shamal, Hayate herself would have found a corner to curl up in and cry for a good day.

She stayed with the kids as long as she could, as long as she could stand it. Noriko tried gamely to help comfort everyone, as did the Lieze twins and Tai-yu, even Vita. Without Nanoha and Lindy, Hayate was fairly certain they would have all fallen apart completely. But it was going to take time to even begin to deal with Natalia's actions, and Hayate herself needed to get away, her children's pain feeding her own. So as night fell for the second time after Hong Kong, Hayate flew out of the valley, and teleported to Angkor. North of the famous temple, she had managed to acquire just enough land to build one of Sara's memorials, triplet to those at Stonehenge and T'ai Shan. She sat beneath the statue, staring out over the half-excavated ruins, knees hugged to her chest, and let the tears flow.

Hayate had been feeling the stress for months, now, since before the Circles' February attack, but that was normal. Compared to the stress she had lived with as a Bureau Enforcer, it had been minor, even the worst periods between Nimrod and her press-conference ending the official conflict. The Circle civil war had been worrisome, but had mostly been Hughes' problem – he dealt with it, and she just had to make sure they were not trying another surprise attack. But Al Hanthis' return had put all the pressure squarely on her. For weeks she had been feeling harried and worried, as the entire world came to rest on her shoulders, almost literally. With the Bureau's decision not to intervene, it felt like the entire universe was resting on her shoulders. She had been able to deal with that pressure easily enough before – she had her Knights, her friends, the children, and allies in the Moderns who were fairly reliable. She knew her capabilities, had allies, and was confident of eventual victory. Hong Kong, she had hoped, would relieve that stress. A solid defeat of Al Hanthis forces, enough prisoners to provide information and demonstrate both Hayate's power and restraint, and Al Hanthis could be convinced to back off, to talk. Backing them off would give Hayate the standing to push the Circles into bringing the Revenants fully under control, which would in turn give her an argument to calm Al Hanthis further, and so on. Hong Kong was supposed to be the start of a self-reinforcing spiral of incremental but visible victories.

Instead there had been casualties atop casualties, dead in the hundreds and injured in the thousands. Instead, the Guard had retreated in relative safety, and while they had captured many prisoners, most of the Guard, including its commander, had escaped. Instead of a victory, Hayate had only a bloody stalemate. She was tired, hurt, stressed, and now her kids were in pain and she had no idea how to help them.

Natalia's betrayal was not the straw the broke the camel's back, it was the knife that undercut the last of Hayate's strength.

She did not know how long she sat there, crying in private, before Nanoha, Suzuka, and Arisa arrived. Her friends did not say anything, just sat next to her at first, Nanoha and Suzuka wrapping their arms around her shoulders, trying to be comforting just by their presence. It had been dark when she arrived, but the moon was setting before she finally found her voice.

"I tried," she whispered, "I tried to understand her, to offer her what I could. Shamal looked at her brother so many times, always the same. We looked at her eye, but could not figure out how it worked. I tried to trust her, and watch her, and she still... she still..."

"Sometimes," Nanoha said, "people just act. Sometimes, it doesn't matter what we do for them, they want what they want, and cannot see the price of the path they follow. Sometimes, they do see it, but think the goal is worth it. You did nothing wrong, Hayate-chan."

"I didn't teach her well enough," Hayate countered.

"Bull!" Arisa glared at her, "This was not your fault, Hayate-chan! She did this, she chose to turn on you, to hurt Cid-chan and the others. _She _did this, _not _you."

Arisa's vehemence was like a slap in the face, shockingly direct and angry in the face of her pain, but after a second, Hayate could not object. Arisa was right, after all, and the blond girl had never had it in her to be tactful. Just honest.

"I still should have watched her closer, put better trackers on them," Hayate said, "or not told them about the trackers, or had Aria maintain standing teleport locks..."

"Or any one of a million other things," Nanoha interrupted gently, squeezing her shoulder, "nobody's perfect, Hayate-chan, not even Chrono-kun. You did better than Fate or I could have, well enough that most of your kids came through today with scrapes bruises and two broken bones between them. Natalia... no one could have predicted that, Hayate-chan. Certainly not that she would turn on you so viciously. It's not your fault, it's hers. From what I heard back at the school, your students are already planning how to deal with her. Funny, for all their anger and pain, they're being remarkably rational about it. They want to bring her back for trial. Well, that's what Noriko and Yussef are saying."

Hayte grinned weakly, "They can put her up there right next to Szash that way, the traitor and the one who instigated the treason."

"You gave them that, Hayate," Nanoha told her, "You taught them to be that way. To be calm, rational, in the face of crisis. To think things through. They're finding a way through their pain, thanks in part to what you taught them."

Hayate shook her head, "I'll tell you precisely how they came up with that idea, and it wasn't me. Yussef and Noriko talked it over between them, figuring out how to handle their friends, to avoid having to deal with their own feelings. He would have brought up historical points, she would be talking about people and their classmates. Then he talked to Mariachi, she talked to Aria and tried to talk to Shamal, then both of them talked to Laura. The three of them then brought it up with the rest of the students. Yussef's boys will listen to him because he's their leader. The girls will listen to Noriko and Laura because Noriko and Laura are the strongest and most skilled of them."

"Who brought them together? Who encouraged them to grow as they have?" Nanoha shook her head, "You may not have given them the ideas, but it was you who taught them their ideas have meaning, place, and strength, taught them to act and act responsibly. Just because one student took it too far and in the wrong direction does not mean her failure is your fault."

"Nanoha is correct, Hayate-chan," Suzuku murmured. "You are only human, you are not responsible for other people's choices. Unless you turn into the sort of dictatorial tyrant you've spent the last decade bringing to justice."

"Speaking of the kids," Arisa finally flopped down, leaning against Hayate's legs to rest her head back on Hayate's knees. "How are the girls? Nanoha's been keeping secrets again."

"I have not!" Nanoha poked Arisa's temple, "I just don't have much information. I've been with the other kids, talking with them, trying to debrief them, to help them figure everything out. Laura's already done it before, but the other kids are having some trouble, especially with Natalia, and I haven't had time to check on the injured. Well, other than Ichigo, Luke, and Megan, and they had nothing worse than broken bones and seemingly-permanent scales. Aria already had them up and about this morning."

The question hurt, but Hayate had expected it. "Allina's the best off. We think she was trying to get into a Guard mage's implants, and they turned her attack back on her. HAL took the brunt of it, and all his programming and memory were wiped. Allina appears to have only taken some backlash shock. She's not unconscious any more, just sleeping, with a relatively high ratio of dream sleep. Aria thinks her subconscious is trying to process everything, but she's been awake long enough several times to prove she's mentally all there, just very tired. Niranjana and Cid-chan, though..."

"Admiral Aignu called a little while ago," Nanoha said, face serious. "They traced Saraswati's attack on the Infinity Library. Apparently Saraswati was less than subtle about any of it. She thinks that may be the 'in' Chrono-kun needs to get the Bureau to intercede, but they'll be coming for Niranjana and Saraswati."

"They won't get her," Hayate shook her head. "I'll send her to that colony Takashi's watching, they're outside Bureau space and anti-Bureau enough to make High Command hesitate about going after one hacker. The thing is... Saraswati's work saved Niranjana's life, but it was very crudely done. Niranjana is awake, and mentally fine, but she has some severe problems remembering names, or matching the names she remembers to the right faces, and her motor control is shot. Also, Saraswati's implants are the only thing keeping her heart and lungs going, her digestive system, all the automatic processes the brain regulates. Niranjana lost a good percentage of her brain, and Saraswati tried to take over as much of the lost functionality as possible. It's better than being dead, but it's going to take time for her to get back to normal, and we will need to make repairs to Saraswati to get the device functional again. The cybernetics Saraswati jerry-rigged are no longer connected to the device, they're running on their own so we can do the device repairs whenever. But the implants themselves… they need to be replaced by permanent systems, properly designed ones, but there are no cyberneticists on Earth who could replace Saraswati's work with any cybernetics, and I'm not sure there _are _any proper implants for what Niranjana needs now."

"Do you know how it happened?"

Hayate shrugged, "Aria was watching the monitors. She missed Natalia's attack on Cid-chan, but it was recorded and on review, it looks like a spell designed to rip apart the target's linker core. Signum knows of something like it, one of Shamal's nastier spells. Thing is, Shamal's spell requires physical contact with the target's linker core – she has to scry it out, grab hold, and then trigger the spell, which still fails spectacularly half the time. I think what happened to Niranjana is, without the direct contact, the spell destabilized randomly. Nerves are both the most energy-conductive part of the body, and the most easily damaged by such energies, so..." she trailed off and shrugged again.

"What about Cid-chan?"

Hayate started to answer, then sighed and shook her head. "I don't know. None of us, not even Shamal, are experts on healing linker cores. Shamal... she's been with Cid-chan since she brought her back from Hong Kong, and I don't think she can leave. She isn't even sparing the attention to tell us what's wrong, but we've made some educated guesses. Natalia's spell worked, mostly, on Cid-chan, and Shamal is trying to rebuild Cid-chan's linker core. The only people who might know how to fix this are some Bureau specialists, but we can't go to them or get them here. There's something, something, tickling around in the back of my mind, but I haven't been able to figure out what it is. Either way, I don't... don't know what we'll be able to do, short of sending her and Shamal to Aignu. If we even can, Shamal almost couldn't teleport her back because of her linker core's instability. And even if the Bureau saved her, we'd never get her back. There's something odd in her linker core, and then there's that powerful healing gift."

Suzuka started, "You think the Bureau would… would…"

"Hold her indefinitely for safety studies?" Hayate shrugged, "you remember, Nanoha, what they were like after the Akira incident, and when I retired. There were serious proposals to take me out of space and put me in a laboratory on a permanent basis. Chrono fought it tooth and nail, of course, and so did Lindy, but it was still suggested. There are still Bureau officers who think it was wrong to let me go, that I should be brought back, for any number of reasons. With Cid-chan? She's an injured little girl who would owe them her life. I'm not saying they would turn her into an experiment, but 'hold her for study'?" Hayate shook her head, "I can't risk it, not with Shamal's daughter."

"Sometimes I wonder if Sara's gift was really a gift or not," Nanoha said. "Ever since then – thanks to some of the responses to you, I know – you've been less trusting. Not of us, not your friends, but of... anyone else."

"Can you really blame me? I mean, nothing untoward ever actually happened to me, but look what happened to Takashi, look what almost happened to me. The Deva magic didn't bring any of that about, Nanoha-chan, or even make it worse or more obvious. It just... happened..." Hayate trailed off as inspiration struck. Thinking back over her experience with the Bureau's response to mysteries clarified the idea that had been in the back of her mind. "Deva magic," she whispered.

The others caught her tone, and Suzuka asked, "What about it, Hayate-chan?"

"It's two linker cores," she said, "the first stabilizes the second, and is balanced in turn. Even without the second, the first becomes stable enough to survive the mage. Sara's original linker core still exists in the Sword of Light."

Nanoha was thinking it over, "You're going to make Cid-chan a Deva mage? You think that'll stabilize her? Won't it be dangerous, though? You haven't done it before."

Hayate deflated for a moment, realizing she did not dare try her first Deva conversion with someone as injured as Cid-chan. Then she laughed, half amused, half sad. "Noriko," she said softly, "Noriko's all set up for my first attempt. Oh, God, Nanoha, I wasn't going to do this to anyone for _years_."

Nanoha hugged her tighter, "Will it save Cid-chan?"

"Probably. I'll have to talk with Aria, she's our best healer after... no, not Aria." Her tone changed, whistful hope shading into authority, "Akira, come here."

Arisa and Suzuka gave her a strange look, but a second later, Akira stepped out of nothing and bowed to her. "My Lady. How may I serve you?"

"I require Takashi's presence at the school. His _physical _presence. I need his assistance and experience pertaining to Deva magic, and I will not settle for a hologram."

"His project..."

"Is less important to me than my children."

Akira met her gaze for a few seconds, obviously considering, then nodded. "I will convey your message, My Lady, but I cannot command him."

"Tell him the terms," Hayate said. "Tomorrow, by sunset. If he is not at my school by then, he will be an hour later."

With a bow, Akira departed. Hayate stood up, hugging her friends, "Thank you, I mean it, but I have work to do, now."

"You had work to do before," Arisa complained. "You're doing too much, Hayate-chan. Relax, calm down, the world won't end if you take a night off. This place is pretty peaceful, just plain pretty, too. Could do with some air conditioning, though."

"But now I have a goal, Arisa-chan," Hayate countered, "something that will help my kids other than standing over them while they hurt."

00000

Settling gingerly into her seat, sore from the strain of battle and rough return, but not actually injured, Szash waved the other two to the seats before her desk. Eri was even worse, having landed far more roughly than Szash had in the emergency extraction. Gali, having 'fought' from the comfort of a monitoring station in the city, just grinned at both of them, though he politely refrained from laughing at his General. "Okay, Gali," Szash said, once she was settled, "give me the bad news."

"Well," he said, "I've got bad news, really bad news, good news, and some surprises."

"I said the bad news, and I meant it," Szash said.

"The bad news is, the Five-oh-First is out of action indefinitely. Three of their four platoons plus the two of you went to Hong Kong, seventy-seven Guard in total. Of whom we retrieved forty-three fit for duty."

Szash had known it was bad, but that still made her cough in surprise and pain. "We lost thirty-four mages?!"

Gali nodded. "Most were third platoon – they were at ground-zero for the fracture that ended the battle, and were probably killed outright, though we received no termination codes. One was from Second Platoon, he reported someone disrupting the Seed, moved to counter, and was subsequently captured. However they captured him, we lost lock and have been unable to re-establish. We believe he is dead, but he's listed as missing since we never received a termination code from his implants. The rest were from First Platoon, most of them killed in the fighting in the air, from who we did receive termination codes.

"The good news is that our injured are relatively light, thanks to the Healers. Captain Master Haen is the worst. A subtle knife tried to use Haen's implants to access the Guard's network, and the resultant confrontation backlashed through him and put him in coma. Something strange happened there, but it wiped the programming in his implants and trashed our logs rather badly and we haven't been able to puzzle it out yet. Master Haen was retrieved immediately after the connection terminated, and the Healers are confident they can wake him in a few days, but they can't speak to mental damage until he's conscious again. Other than that – a lot of bruises and lacerations, a couple broken bones from those lunatics' insistence on close combat, and one case of extreme emotional stress, all but the last already healed."

Szash frowned, curious about the last one, "Extreme emotional stress? How'd that happen?"

"Private Journeyman Raus encountered Laura Simms, one of Hayate's students, and Akira. Raus has acquired several local languages, and apparently the two were arguing whether to kill or capture him, while the girl fought him. He's suffering a combination of humiliation and terror. The healers have him in hand, and he'll be fine, but this was his first combat mission. In his defense, of the six dead in First Platoon, four of them were killed by Akira, including Raus' squad leader. Raus himself got a nasty slash across his chest, and almost lost a hand. He'll be all right, but at the moment the kid's a wreck."

Szash grimaced. She had not encountered Akira or Takashi, but had seen recordings of the former. He would not have been especially upsetting, if not for the fact that his attitude was that of a child at play, rather than the murderous soldier he patently was. "Take care of Raus," Szash ordered, "anything he needs. I'll go down and talk with him whenever the Healers clear it."

Gali nodded, making a note, then carried on. "The really bad news is, we lost about half the Seed we sent to Hong Kong, prior to recalling them after the fracture. We won't have solid numbers until they get back and we can physically count them, of course, but an eyeball count by the lighter sent to retrieve an Alpha was fifty-percent losses. I'm guessing most went in that mass-demolition towards the end of the battle. A few are probably still there, rattled by the combat enough to forget their programming, hiding in sewers and what-not, but we left a lot of dead Seed. That worries me, General, a great deal. There are precious few things that can hurt a Seed of Leviathan, the idea that the locals have something that effective..." he shook his head slowly, "scary, especially if it's something they can turn on our mages as well."

He paused, flipping through his notes. "The good news is, all our major objectives but one were accomplished, that 'one' being the elimination of Hayate and her people. The entirety of North Africa is secure, from the Sinai to the Atlantic, from the Mediterranean to the southern Atlantic coast. We did not quite have the manpower to go after the Congo region as we thought, but that was tertiary anyhow. Resistance was about as stiff as expected – rebel mages in their amplification circles, with non-mage troops. In most cases, once we seized the government offices and military command officers, the resistance folded. There are a few places – Somalia, the Ivory Coast, Libya, a couple smaller regions – where we could not secure all the government, but we managed well enough. There are a lot of conventional troops out there, though, and it seems like everyone has a weapons arsenal, so actually pacifying the area is going to take years. Losius has some ideas for using the locals who surrendered for that, but says we'll have to be careful not to isolate our supporters from the local populations. I've got him putting together an operational proposal now, but it'll take him a few days to get all the data he needs."

"Remind him to be careful. The rebels were always excellent at espionage and sabotage," Szash reminded him, "I don't want a repeat of the cataclysm."

"Duly noted," Gali said with a smile and tone of long-suffering, "mother dear."

Szash threw a stylus at him, then asked, "You said you had something surprising as well?"

"The recon team sent to Japan to study that redirection effect was mostly successful. Turns out it's an extremely complicated set of interlocking wards. Ghost wards."

Szash twitched in surprise and stared at him, but he only nodded seriously. "Ghosts? Gods above, how can these barbarians pull off Ghost wards?" The Ghosts were relics, a hold-over from the Warlords Era, when the Conclave had needed a way to meet and plan in absolute secrecy. The answer had been Ghosts, experts at misdirection and camouflage of all sorts, from mundane to magical. They had remained, in small numbers, after the last Warlord was defeated, and fulfilled their purpose for both sides of the later primitivist rebellion. Szash knew of two who had lived in Al Hanthis at the time of the Cataclysm, though no one knew what had happened to them. True to their name, they had vanished. Ghosts had always kept their secrets close, their numbers small, and whenever the Conclave needed something kept secret, they gave it to the Ghosts. "You're certain?"

Gali nodded. "The effect matches in all particulars a structure of Ghost wards named 'Wall of Wanderers'. It's actually several wards combined, and the Japanese are generating the structure from several thousand locations. Effectively, anyone approaching Japan with intent to harm Japan or the Japanese people in any way will be redirected. Teleports will be similarly redirected, the recon team tested it. They also think there's something else behind the Wall, something more violent, but did not press the wards to find out. Our initial scouts, the ones who noticed the wards in the first place, were looking for information to aid in conquering Homeworld, so the ward triggered on them.

"The interesting thing is, according to Archives the Wall is only good to cover an area of a few miles. The scout team managed to precisely map the effect's border over the eastern ocean, what the locals call the Pacific. It's not a single smooth border, but rather a series of overlapping spheres, hundreds of them. The overlap effect seems to amplify it, enough to reach out that far from the coast, but there are multiple sites. Also, the effect reaches a significantly lower altitude than we expected – still several miles, but not as bad as the coast."

"So we can't stop it with a single attack," Szash said. "Damn, I was still hoping."

Her aides shrugged, then Eri asked, "Any sign of a ZES platform? It would take more than one shot, but not many more."

Gali shook his had, "No. There are indications of a couple of hundred caches of machines on Homeworld itself, but those are almost all in rebel hands. A few at the bottom of the oceans, but those would be too difficult to get to until the war is over. There are some indications the old moon installations are still there, and, of all things, an old distant early-warning platform out past the last planet is still live. It's blind and senile with age, mind you, and there shouldn't be a planet that far out on that weird an orbit at all, but the DEW's still there and responded to the general broadcast query."

"The DEW platforms were designed to be autonomous and rugged," Szash reminded him, "not entirely surprising that one would last this long, but it's useless to us at the moment, even if it was fully functional. Stuff on the moon could be usable, if we can get past the Bureau."

"Master Adept Wahsi is putting together a remote survey team to try and figure out if anything is worth going after," Gali said, "but nothing that's responded is large enough to be a ZES platform."

"So Hayate's safe in Japan, and likely to remain that way for the foreseeable future," Szash said.

"And we got hammered, hard," Eri added with a grimace.

"Not hard enough to affect the next operation, though," Gali said. "Should we go ahead with the next wave?"

Szash considered it for a few moments, then shook her head. "Not just yet. Ask me again in a few days, when we've got a better handle on what it will take to pacify the new territories. If they'll submit as easily as projected, we'll go ahead, but if there's serious resistance, we'll need to modify and slow down the plan to account for that. Wouldn't make much sense to get so far ahead of ourselves we lose control of home base."

00000

Noriko found Ichigo in one of the smaller workrooms shortly after Hayate returned. Despite possessing a series of impressive bruises from his rough landing, he was working. He had up a series of targets, and was practicing sword-work and buster spells with Masamune. Mostly, she knew, he was trying to burn off energy, tire himself out, avoid thinking. A lot of them were doing that, in their own ways, and Noriko was self-aware enough to realize she was doing it to. She was talking to everyone and anyone, helping them deal with their emotions, rather than dealing with her own. But her friends needed her help, and she had a plan to deal with her own reactions later.

Noriko watched Ichigo for a couple minutes, then cleared her throat. When he turned to her, she said, "Hello, Ichigo. How are you feeling?"

He grimaced, and turned back to the targets, though he did not resume his attacks. "How do you think I feel?"

"Hurt, confused, angry," Noriko answered, moving up to stand next to him, "roughly the same as the rest of us."

He snorted once, then shook his head, "Hurt, yeah, more than angry, but I'm not confused. You heard Hayate-sensei – Natalia went straight from Hong Kong to Moscow, kidnapped her brother. I know exactly why she did this, there's no confusion. But angry... Hell yes, I'm angry. At myself! _She told me_! She fu... _told me _she was going to do this, the night before."

Noriko flinched a little from the rage in his voice. Ichigo was far angrier than the others, which she had half-expected. "How did she tell you, Ichigo?"

"She said the battle would not turn out like anyone else expected, that not all of us would return. We talked, while I got dinner, about the school and the battle and everything. She said she would be 'taking care' of Cid-chan, and that she did not think we would all return to the school. She _told_ me what she was going to do, and I _completely_ missed it."

Noriko put a hand on his shoulder, making him look at her, "Ichigo, she did not say she was going to betray us. Natalia's assigned mission in Hong Kong was to take care of Cid-chan, to guard her against Al Hanthis mages, Circle betrayal, and her own gift. She could very easily have been right about not all of us returning, not because she expected to betray us, but because we could very easily have died. Laura was almost burned out by the EMP, Megan still has scales from the untested dragon form, and Zafira-sensei took a nasty hit from a guard mage. All of us were injured in small ways, and any of those could have been far worse. Nothing she said would have made you think she could or would betray us, Ichigo. It's not your fault. The only people who could have had reason to suspect that were Shamal-sensei and Hayate-sensei, who both saw Natalia as hurt but healing. If neither of them realized what she was planning, how could you have? From a conversation any of us could have had with each other, worrying the night before a major battle?"

"I knew her," Ichigo insisted. "Natalia never worried about anything happening to her, it was always her brother, always her grandmother, always the people around her. She never got depressed about her own fate, just about seeing everyone else's. She was as good as telling me..."

"That she thought she would die? That she thought you might? We were going into battle, Ichigo, and not a surprise raid, either. We all knew Hong Kong would be different from February, and we were all worried. If any of us, even the teachers, had heard her say that to you, or to us, we would have assumed like you did, that she was just worried about all of us surviving. Especially her! She sees death, Ichigo. If she told me anything about 'not all of us will return', I would have started getting everyone to fill out wills and write last letters home."

Ichigo started to say something, then paused and sighed, shaking his head. "Makes sense. But it feels wrong. I knew her better than anyone, I should have known, should have heard it in her voice."

Noriko almost sighed herself, in exasperation. _Boys,_ she muttered mentally, _why do they all have to be so stubborn?_ She had said her piece, however, and knew he would think over what she had sadid. Giving up on convincing him for the moment, she decided to try distraction. "Hayate-sensei is back."

He looked up, almost smiled, "Is she okay?"

Noriko giggled at the look on his face and worry in his voice. "You realize how ridiculous that is? _Us_, worrying after _her_?"

He shrugged, "She's Hayate-sensei. Is she okay? She was looking really rough before she headed out."

"She's better," Noriko told him, "though I don't know how well, or why precisely. But she's better. And don't go on about how she disappeared – Nanoha-sensei and I had to practically hit her over the head and tie her up to get her to take some time to herself. She needed it as badly as you did. "

Ichigo actually smirked at her, "Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds, you manipulating Hayate-sensei into taking care of herself? What about you, though. You've been looking out for all of us, who's looking out for you."

Noriko waved that aside, "I can afford to put it off for a bit. In a day or so, Laura'll snap over this, lose her temper over something, and that'll set me off. She'll be so busy trying to make me feel better, she'll get over her own hurt and anger by the time I'm feeling better."

"A little manipulative, don't you think?"

Noriko shook her head. "I know my friends, Ichigo, especially Laura. She won't face Natalia's betrayal directly, but when I let go she won't be able to resist trying to help me, which will force her to face it as well. It's manipulation, yes, but not underhanded or mean-spirited. It's how I care for people. But for the moment, Yussef would like to talk you as well, but he lost Chen-chi's coin toss again."

Ichigo actually flinched a little at that, "Ah... about what?"

"About Hong Kong, of course," Noriko replied. "You're the last of the Myrmidons to be debriefed, and he wants to know everything you did during the battle. He's especially interested in that teleport you and Toushiro worked out, how you got it done so fast."

"The short range eliminates almost all the variables and simplifies the rest, including time and power needs, but we didn't..." he trailed off, face falling again, "Natalia figured it out. Flying's actually faster, for most of us, it's the unpredictability that let the Hail Mary work."

"You'll need to explain it to all of us, then. It's too useful to keep to yourself."

Ichigo left off venting, and followed her back out of the classroom building and across to the library. They talked over the battle a little, carefully avoiding the subject of Natalia, focusing on Ichigo's and Toushiro's efforts. When they reached the library, where most everyone was still gathered, Yussef waved them over to the table he was using.

When Noriko went to leave the boys to talk, however, Yussef held up a hand, "Wanted to ask you about something we just saw." He waved to the small screen in front of him, turning it for her to see. It was displaying a paused video clip, Master Adept Hughes at a podium in front of a small crowd. "Hughes held a press conference," Yussef explained. "Most of it was just giving the news people the basics of Hong Kong, first reports and all that. But during the questions period, he said something that's bothering me."

Yussef started the clip, and a muffled voice asked, "Grand Master Hughes, I've heard reports through the medical community that one of Miss Yagami's people attacked two others during the battle for no reason. Did this attack happen, and why? Was it treason, as some are suggesting, or something more complicated?"

Hughes grimaced, shaking his head, "It is not the policy of the United States Department of Defense or the Mage Circles to comment on covert operations, ongoing or otherwise. Next question."

Yussef paused the video again, and raised an eyebrow at her. "That bug you as much as it bugs me?"

Noriko nodded slowly, sinking into a chair. Hughes' comment was hardly subtle, but at the same time so out of left field and incomplete that it would be believable. A man under unaccustomed pressures facing unaccustomed media attention letting slip something he should not have. Al Hanthis would trust it, as much as they did anything Hughes said. "It's damage control," she said. "Al Hanthis will have to suspect Natalia of being a plant, a double-agent. Now, Hughes has almost admitted that she is, in a 'slip of the tongue'. We may not have to deal with Natalia at all, if they believe him enough. At the least, Al Hanthis will have to question everything she tells them."

"That bastard," Ichigo whispered, face pale and tight with renewed anger. "Who the Hell is he..."

"Ichigo," Yussef said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "This isn't last year, man. Natalia made her choice, now she's going to have to live with the consequences. If we get her and put her on trial, that's great and I'll be happier for it. But if they decide to do something..." he shrugged uncomfortably. "I know I shouldn't listen to the bedouin in me, but in this case, I'm not going to feel bad about anything that happens to Natalia. Nothing at all."

Noriko gave him a sad look, a little disappointed but not really surprised, and shook her head. "You foreign barbarians and your vengeance obsessions."

"The Forty-Seven Ronin," Yussef countered immediately.

Noriko waved that argument aside, "Oh, please, that is a glorious tragedy about devoted samurai redeeming their fallen master's honor. That wasn't _vengeance_, it was _honor_." The grin ruined the haughtiness, but that was the point.

Both boys chuckled at the joke, though Ichigo's was a little forced. Yussef let go of his shoulder, then leaned around him to talk quietly. "You heard Laura's latest twist?"

Feeling a sinking sensation, Noriko said, "No. What's she doing now? Is this about Mercedes' latest prank?"

Yussef shook his head, though he did grin. Laura had been in the infirmary until after everyone else returned from Hong Kong, so they had all been there to witness, or at least to _hear_, her reaction to Mercedes' artistic efforts – turning everything in Laura's room, down to her clothes and carpet, painfully girlish shades of pink. Mercedes had been mortified when watching the battle impressed on her just how serious Hong Kong was, but had not been able to get the time to undo the spells before Laura's return. "No, not that. Her latest twist to the Natalia situation. She wants the rest of us to promise to avoid Natalia, if we run into her. Says she's the only one who won't kill Natalia, and we need her alive to put her on trial."

Noriko frowned slightly, "We're hardly going to kill her on sight."

"I think she's worried about the heat of battle," Yussef said with a shrug. "And to be honest, I think she's right. The teachers, sure, they won't let their anger at her lead them into going too far. But us? Come on, Noriko, we're good, especially for our ages, but so is Natalia. Could you take her down without killing her? If she seriously fought back? With Cid-chan dying back here while Shamal-baa-chan works herself to exhaustion trying to save her?" He shook his head, "No, Laura's the best to do this. The Myrmidons won't touch Natalia, not unless she surrenders outright."

00000

Allina finally woke up completely two days after Hong Kong. She had vague memories of being partly awake, of dozing while hazy figures moved about her, but she did not truly wake for any of those incidents. Waking presented its own hazards, as Aria insisted on running a seemingly endless series of tests to verify that nothing permanent had happened. The tests took until shortly before dinner, but beyond HAL's entire programming being wiped clean, nothing showed up in Aria's tests beyond a little residual instability that was fading naturally.

Catching Allina up on everything took until some time after dinner. News of Natalia's betrayal hurt, news of Cid-chan's injury was bad, but it was not until she heard what had happened to Niranjana that she broke down into tears. Aria was nice enough to hold her through that and whisper meaningless promises, until she got herself back together again. "H-how... how bad is she, really?"

"She'll be fine, eventually," Aria told her, "but is very similar to a severe stroke victim. Natalia's failed spell damaged large portions of her brain, and the components Saraswati used as implants were not properly designed as replacements. She can't see out of her right eye, and her fine motor control, especially with her right hand, is atrocious. She has trouble speaking as well, especially if she speaks quickly. All of which can be handled with therapy, though it will probably take her years to fully recover. She'll need all the help and support we can give her, especially from you."

"Whatever she needs," Allina promised, feeling her heart twisting with worry.

"The worst part," Allina continued, making Allina cringe, "is her memory. The most obvious sign is, she has trouble with names. She has Lotte and I confused, and she called Zafira 'Arf' – you should have seen the look on his face. The changes are always related, but she mistakes everyone. I'm already working on her with it, but it's going to be difficult. Her general memories are very spotty, as well. While she remembers the members of her family, she does not remember who is who, her memories have some surprising gaps throughout her life, and she remembers nothing of Hong Kong or the days before it."

Allina froze at that, turning to look at Aria in horror. "N-nothing? Of the nigh... the day before?"

Aria gave her a sad smile, "I'm sorry, Allina, but nothing. Whatever you two talked about – and yes, despite your blush, we all have a fairly good idea what that was – Niranjana does not remember it."

For a few seconds, hearing Aria's certainty, Allina actually relaxed. _She doesn't remember it, it didn't happen. We can go back to being friends, and I won't have to worry about hurting her again. She'll never even... No. No, she'd know. Someone will tell her, or she'll ask again._ "Can I see her, sensei?"

Aira considered that for a moment, then nodded. "Her parents are here, staying up at the house, but they just left her for the night. She isn't up to walking yet, she has to relearn how to balance, but there's no reason you can't go see her. Actually, it's high time you moved back into your own room. Tai-yu thinks some of the clothing-drifts may be growing things. She's in workroom nine, it's still set up as an infirmary adjunct from after Cairo. I'll leave you to get dressed, but I'll be just down the hall if you need me."

Allina got dressed as quickly as she could manage, then stuck her head out the door. She was in another workroom, number eight from the placement, and there was no one else in the hall. From there it took her a full two minutes to work up the courage to knock on Niranjana's door. It clicked open a moment later, the shields releasing, and Allina nervously pushed the door open and stuck her head inside.

Niranjana was sitting up in bed, a book on a stand open on the rolling hospital-table over her lap. She was looking at the door, and her face lit up, even if the right side of her face hesitated and dragged. Then she spoke, half-shouting, "Hal-tsan! You wake!"

Allina almost fell over, not so much at the tone, as the fact that Niranjana thought she was her device. Slipping into the room, she answered, "Uh, yeah, 'Jana-chan, I'm awake. But I'm not HAL, I'm Allina."

Niranjana's face fell, then she slumped slightly, "Sow..." she cut off with a grimace, then Allina heard her mental voice. _'I am sorry, Hal-chan. I cannot speak properly anymore, though telepathy works, and I'm getting __everyone__'s names wrong. Saraswati's implants do not interface properly between my muscles and memories. Aria-sensei says I will get better, but... well...'_ she shrugged. _'I will get your name right sometime, too. It is just... Saraswati did not really know what she was doing, so a lot of corruption crept into my memories.'_

"It's fine, you can call me Hal," Allina said, pulling the visitor's chair over to the bed, "but you realize, you're talking about yourself like you're a computer?"

Niranjana grimaced and shrugged again, _'I cannot help it. Saraswati does not appear to have interfered with my thought processes, but language is as much memory as thought, and I keep seeing things in computer terms.'_

"Is Saraswati tied into you, now?"

Niranjana shook her head, _'No. She separated the components she implanted, in case of an attack on her. But part of her will always be with me now.'_ She pulled her right hand out from under the sheet, and held it up. It was twitching, slightly, like a slight tick.

Allina could not help gasping in surprise. It was recognizable as a hand the fingers and thumb were still there, but Saraswati's alterations were painfully evident. There were silvery filaments tracing in her skin, and seeing them in her hand, Allina realized there were more tracing up the back of Niranjana's neck and under her hair. Worst of all, however, was the fact that a long chunk of Niranjana's forearm was metal, from just below her pinky, to half her wrist, tapering down to just short of her elbow. The merger between metal and skin was smooth, unnoticeable save for the color and reflectivity.

"God, 'Jana-chan," Allina whispered, reaching out to touch the metal gently. It was warm, not cold like she expected, but definitely metal. "Does it hurt at all?"

_'Not there, no, the metal is numb, but the implants are not properly calibrated. That whole arm feels strange, and... nothing feels right. Scratchy is feathery, and painful is pleasant, and vice versa, but not always. Hot is still hot, but I put my hand right through an open flame without realizing it while Aria-sensei was testing me.'_

"Are you going to say yes to any question I ask you?"

_'Yes, but only if you ask the right one.'_ They grinned at each other for a moment, then Niranjana looked away and blushed. _'Um, Hal-chan... everyone who's come to see me, except Rana... __Father__ and __Mother__... has hinted that we, um... talked... just before Hong Kong, but... I... do not...'_

For just a moment, Allina almost denied it, almost tried to weasel out of it and go back to the way things had been before. 'Before' was comfortable, safe, she knew how they worked together. But that would not have been fair to Niranjana, and... _Whatever she needs,_ Allina reminded herself. "You asked me out," she whispered, blushing herself, then suffered through having to explain it all again.

00000

Uli was one of the brightest young girls ever. She knew this for a fact, because her parents never failed to tell her that whenever she showed them one of her accomplishments. They had been telling her that for years, though sometimes, recently, she thought they were lying. Well, not lying, so much as not meaning the same thing they usually did. For example, there was a distinct difference, she knew, between how impressed they had been with the light-sculpture she made for class, and her effort to reprogram the apartment's locks to recognize them by mage-print instead of by key-code. Both incidents were mere weeks old, yet her parents' reactions – almost word for word the same – had still been very different.

Uli was really sorry about the lock thing, and had been feeling especially guilty the last few days. Her father had left for almost a week just after it, and her mother had been worried the entire time. None of the other kids at school had known what all the parents were worried about, but everyone's parents were worried, which made all of them worried. That was the downside, she realized, of having all her friends and classmates be fellow Guard Brats.

But now her father was back, safe and sound, none of the barbarians had managed to stand up to him. Other children had not been as lucky, Uli's father had made that clear, but she could handle that the next day, when she went back to school. For now, she was happy to see her father, though he and her mother had just disappeared to have some 'alone time'. So Uli retreated to her own room, triggering her implant to bring up the communications network. She wanted to find out if any of her friends were having as good a day as she was. Instead of one of her friends, however, as soon as the network screen opened, a line of text appeared.

-Hello?

Uli started, surprised someone was already trying to reach her, especially without voice or video. "Um... Hello? Who are you?"

-I'm... I'm not sure. My memories are jumbled, strange. I remember... a lot of names. I seem to have misplaced my body, as well.

Uli started at that, giving the screen a weird look. "Misplaced your body? How did you do that?"

A voice kicked in, finally, but it was strange, fluctuating between soprano and bass, as if the screen's speakers were not properly calibrated. "I was in the fighting over Hong Kong, all my memories agree on that. I was... doing something involving hacking, but... I don't remember what, precisely. Whoever I was fighting, they surprised me, and when the chaos finished I was... here, wherever here is."

"You're in my computer," Uli said, "Yrth Arn Tower, four hundredth floor, apartment seventy two. We're right in the center of the city in one of the lowest apartments, so we can see all the whole world now."

"Four Hundredth floor?! Nowhere in the... world... has... This is Al Hanthis, isn't it?"

"Well of course it is. Where else would it be?" Whoever this was, they were very strange, and Uli was a little scared – strange people did strange things, Uncle Haen was a shining example of that. But whoever it was, they were only in the communications network, it was not like they could do anything to her. So she ignored the trepidation, and indulged in her curiosity. "You aren't one of the barbarians from Outside, are you? Outside is scary, it's so bright and there are so many weird things out there, and no one has any protection from the Void... are you from out there?"

"I... I guess not, not if I'm here, but my memories must be more messed up than I thought. I remember... I don't know, it's hard. I don't suppose... you wouldn't be willing to try to help me figure it out, would you? Who I am and where I'm supposed to be?"

_A new project, yay! Something Mom and Dad'll be happy about this time!_ "Of course I'll help! I'm Uli. What's your... oh, you said you don't remember your name. What should I call you?"

"Well, I remember several names, but... call me Allina. I like that one the best, it sounds like home."

00000

Author's Notes: Yeah, I know, it's been forever, and for that you have my apologies. I was mugged, mugged, I say! Crazy broad with a hammer, called herself 'Inspiration' or some such, started ranting about these crazy theories and threatened me with unspeakable tortures... or something like that. In all honesty, I think I got a little worn out with the Deva Series – not that I'm giving up on it, far from that, but this is been my 'major project' for almost three years now. Also, I had a whole slew of idea for several other stories, and a couple of them seriously got under my skin. I know it's scant consolation to those of you patiently waiting, but... well, I'm fairly well along in the next chapter of Endless Waltz already, thanks to the same bout of diarrhea of the fingers, so it should only be another weak or so for that chapter.

Also, regarding Szash's scene above, _yes_, Al Hanthis and the Circles both refer to their more secretive services as 'Ghosts'. It's not plot relevant, beyond being yet another referential connection between the two. In the Circles, the Ghosts are an intelligence force, gathering and distributing information, as well as watching the Circles for signs of infiltration or heresy – roughly analogous to the CIA and the FBI counter-intelligence, or the old Soviet KGB. In Al Hanthis, the Ghosts are a much more specialized and operational group, dedicated to providing security and secrecy to select locations and meetings. It's possible that the former evolved from survivors of the latter or that the former borrowed the name, or that mutual habits of secrecy and invisibility garnered them the same name independently.

00000

Baughn: Here's the new chapter, at long last, excuses above. The TSAB is not going to be happy with Niranjana on several levels, but their response is going to be tempered by Al Hanthis' presence. I won't say what that response will be here, as their response plays a role later, but they're not fully informed as to precisely happened – i.e., they know they were hacked, but not who was in control of it. You are right, though, that the Bureau would be of the opinion that it would have been better for Niranjana to die than to have created a device as rampantly independent as Saraswati – they were willing to hit Uminari City with the l'Arc en Ciel, after all, the Bureau has never struck me as squeamish about collateral damage for the 'greater good'. As far as Saraswati turning evil though, that would depend on Niranjana – Saraswati is very much Niranjana's creation and willing subject. Remember how closely devices identify with their masters, Saraswati is no different in that respect, only in regards to the freedom of action it has to pursue that loyalty. And yes, re-reading a story (even my own stories, sadly enough) to catch things I've missed is a fun past-time.

Kell Shock: You're probably right about too/to aggressive, that's one of the uses that still gets me. The Nanoha canon combats never included short-ranged teleports, and I have two reasons why I think that is. First, teleports, even short range, take a certain amount of time to execute. In most combat conditions, that pause would give an enemy too much time to act. Secondly, because of the time it takes to set up and execute, flying at the target would probably be just as fast. The HHM worked over Hong Kong for two reasons – the Guard was deliberately avoiding (not ignoring, but avoiding) Hayate's kids to go after easier prey, giving Toushiro and Ichigo the time necessary. Second, flying directly at a target gives that target all that time to watch your approach and react, whereas there's almost no way to tell where such a short-range teleport will end up until it's over and done with, giving the teleportee the element of surprise. The traditional devices of the Nanoha-verse do draw all their power through the user's linker core, providing the control and buffering necessary to get full use of the available power. The Guard's implants and distant generators, on the other hand, use the linker core strictly for control and buffering of the generators' power-flows. The power comes from the generator, and is then contained, shaped, and released by the Guard's linker core, through the medium of the implants. Think of it like a dam – the implants are the physical structure of the dam, the water is the power from the generators, and the linker core is the flood-gates/water-intakes that control the flow of the water. The Guard get somewhat greater power (limited by implant codes determined by their rank), but are not as well protected from it as a device-mage. The Al Hanthean's implants also allow the multi-tasking of power that devices grant, but the Circles' wolfpacks do not grant. Hayate's problems with Szash were three-fold. One was power – Szash has multiple generators dedicated to her use, allowing for much more and much tougher shields. Second and most complicated, as you mentioned, Hayate is not a close-in fighter by training or experience. Yes, she's been practicing with the Sword of Light since she got it, but that's roughly three years, nowhere near the experience her Knights have, and she's not a natural like Laura. Then there's the fact that, in the past, she has had the power to overwhelm anyone who got close to her (look at what happened to Colonel Esar over Cairo). Also, I haven't referenced it in a while, but her Knights usually take steps to keep her out of close-combat, so she's inexperienced at it. The third problem Hayate faced with Szash was the fact that Szash was totally defensive – remember, until Eri managed to throw a shot into the fight, Szash was completely unable to attack, and her shields were failing. Hayate almost had Szash, but Eri did what wingmen are supposed to do, and did it well. As for Natalia, she's not possessed, she's just borderline multiple-personality – she created the 'Precia' persona based on what she could find of the original as a defense against people asking her questions. She brought it out again as a response to the pain of her grandmother's rejection. The Blood Penance will come into play in the next few chapters and will be explained there, but it is powerful, with some severe moral implications.

boomer sooner: Maunders actually 'owned' pretty much everyone, some more severely than others. But Takashi… it's less 'recruiting' and more 'drafted', only not as pleasant.

SpaceBrotha: Here's a long reply, to compliment that long review. The log from Saraswati was an experiment and a bit of playing around, for me. Like you said, a nice change of pace. The ambiguity in the log's notes on Niranjana's injuries is less due to Saraswati's lack of information, than due to my own. Also, if you look at most injury summaries (which is all the log contained) they generally don't get more specific than that, saving specifics for actual medical reports – level of trauma, part of body injured, type of injury. As for Niranjana's injuries themselves – the above chapter has a pretty accurate run-down, though she has some internal issues that no one has mentioned yet (altered metabolic rate, unnatural and irregular cardio-pulmonary rate, and the like, all due to the jerry-rigged nature of the implants). The Bureau did notice Saraswati's actions, as noted above, and I believe the above chapter also covers why Niranjana's injuries differ from Cid-chans.

Natalia did communicate, very surreptitiously, with Yosho prior to her betrayal, and her actions were moderately stupid, but more will be revealed about her in the future. How her eye works (and a few of the other, similar, things that I've hinted at) will be explained in a few chapters when she meets the 'expert' Yosho mentioned (no undead, though – Atarsamain was mostly being theatrical in the prologue). Natalia's grandmother is comfortable with the idea of dying, but more than that she was horrified by Natalia's actions. If Natalia had simply made a bargain through Hayate, been above-board and honest about the whole thing, her grandmother would have been fifty-fifty on going with her. It was the method Natalia chose that lost her her grandmother. As for the 'Precia' bit – it's not Precia herself, but how Natalia refers to a particularly thorough psychological mask she cooked up over the summer – see the Kyoto Redux chapter.

Singh's scene, like Saraswati's, was the product of curiosity, in this case how the 'normal' people would view a mage-battle and the Seed.

The basic idea of a sniper would work to combat the Seed, save for the fact that there's only one sniper rifle in the world I know of that could hurt a Seed – a Barrett .50. Other small-arms fire would simply deflect off the scales and hide. Even a Barrett is not going to get a one-shot kill, not against a creature specifically designed for non-magical physical combat. See the 'Side Story' that should be posted with this chapter for a more detailed analysis.

Regarding Megan's dragon form – she managed it well enough, it's the return that things went screwy thanks to Maunders' EMP. She hasn't shown up yet, probably won't until next chapter, but the 'scales' she is mentioned as retaining above are not temporary, or the only problem. Megan's concern about returning from the Seed form was not due to complexity, but due to the Seed's magic-nullification. If the nullification effect is caused by one of the unidentified bits and she managed to get all the way to full Seed form, she would lose the magic necessary to shape-shift back to human.

Maunders' is definitely practical before dogmatic, but even she had no idea how big the EMP would end up. Because she did not understand the difference a device makes, Maunders did mess herself up just as badly as she did everyone else. But she is capable, and I do have plans for her. With the EMP spell itself, the Seed were completely unaffected – the control input in the back of the head is within the Seed's magic-nullification effect, and doesn't rely on magic. They retreated when the Guard mages were recalled, an automatic signal incorporated into the Guard's emergency teleport.

Regarding going straight to melee with the HHM, you're half right. Remember that none of the kids except Laura were confident of taking on a Guard mage single-handed, and it was Toushiro's plan. Toushiro's a ranged fighter, he was looking to pin and disorient a target, then back off to where he's best before the target could recover.

Hayate could probably have hit Szash with Morningstar's Wrath until Szash went down, but the build-up time would have given Szash time to try something else. In my interpretation, because of how she was trained, Hayate's a ranged fighter who's capable of devastating hand-to-hand, and switches as appropriate. Against a group of targets, or while functioning as command and control, she uses ranged buster spells. Against Szash, closing gave her the chance to keep Szash too busy to counter, and took advantage of an apparent weakness in the Guard's training – the lack of hand-to-hand. With the Hellgate spell, Hayate opened a _very_ small opening to the void, and closed it almost immediately, something Al Hanthis can do, but cannot do so casually – it's a facet of how the Deva magic works. Where a normal instability disrupts her magic, one she builds incorporates safeguards, though do remember how she ended up – Reinforce and Akira were the ones holding her up, due to a combination of soaking the l'Arc en Ciel and using the Hellgate.

The Al Hanthis mages do have a major weakness in their reliance on distant generators instead of their own linker cores, but they gain in personal safety. Al Hanthis is perfectly well aware of how vulnerable those connections are, so those connections are seriously hardened and monitored. Allina found her way into one of those, which is what resulted in the injuries she suffered. On the other hand, look what happened to the mage who's connection she hacked – in a coma with possible to probable mental and memory damage.

Regarding Yosho… he's beginning to aggravate me. He's too calm and collected, too confident, though given where he's going to end up he can't be anything else. As for the politicians, yeah, they're endemic to the human condition, I'm afraid.

Most of your questions about reactions to Hong Kong will be handled in future chapters. Not immediately, but eventually, as a lot of those reactions are going to be spread out. As for the 'Warlords Era', it's the ill-defined period before the Conclave of Masters came to power, which was long before the Al Hazred disaster. Not sure if that will ever get more than passing mentions in future chapters.

CrimsonDX: Maunders' situation will be playing out over the next couple of chapters, should be good. Regarding the 'Emperor' and 'Dark Witch', you're trying to get me to reveal plot points, which, while amusing, wont' work:). Yosho would be a good candidate, he definitely has the political moves, but an Emperor needs more than that, either fear or adoration sufficient to influence the population. Yosho currently lacks that, though he could pick it up. You are right about Takashi and Hayate not having the right mentalities, though Takashi could become Emperor quite easily if he were interseted. Szash is not so much 'politically inept' as 'focused elsewhere'. Politics for her is a necessary part of her job, a skill set she has picked up, but you are right that she's not at Yosho's level. Natalia's obsession with 'saving' her brother was one of the hints, as was her facility with the Al Hazred/Al Hanthis language, but the bigger hints were stylistic – she had no viewpoint scenes after the Kyoto trip despite figuring in several scenes, and she was the only student not to get a viewpoint scene for her device activation. Based on the above, Allina and Niranjana are recovering, it's Cid-chan who's in danger, but unfortuantely resolution for her is several chapters off, either way. Don't worry about leaving long reviews, I've no objections to them, quite the opposite (how am I supposed to reply to a short review, anyhow?), as Space Brotha proved above. Thanks for the review!

Rathmun: The FRAG-12 rounds would be more effective than most small-arms, the problem being Seed are designed and built using materials knowledge that is beyond modern capabilities. Remember, Seed are immune to magic when complete, not while being built (and despite being a 'living' being, they are built, not born). The best weapon against a Seed, short of cataclysmic weapons, is the humble RPG, specifically the old RPG-7, which has six to ten times the armor pen of the FRAG-12 rounds. Also I highly doubt a 200m range with a shotgun, even with the fin-stabilizers. The biggest problem both the RPG-7 and FRAG-12 face is range – at their effective ranges (not test ranges, but actual useable range), a shooter will have time for one RPG or two to three shotgun rounds, which is not going to stop a Seed. Also, regarding posting time – I do this for fun, and schedules aren't fun (not for me, at least), so I post when I finish. I tend to have a lot of stories going at once (I post less than half what I write), and sometimes inspirition strikes for another story and I let this one lay fallow for a bit. Other times I get caught up in this one to the point of forgetting other stories. So I post when I post.

Jack Inqu: When you posted that review I almost changed this chapter title, almost. Hong Kong in general was supposed to be inconclusive – if either side scored a solid victory right out of the gates like that, it would have escalated things rather more rapidly than I need them to. Natalia's mental health has always been a little questionable – not 'insane', but less stable than most, largely thanks to the loss of her family. Her attempts to 'save' her brother, and failures thereof, made it worse, but she still doesn't quite meet the legal definition of insanity, as she is still well aware of the right and wrong of her actions. That being said, I have some sympathy for her, I can understand her decisions (obviously, since I came up with them), but I'm unwilling to completely abandon her. There's still some aftermath in the next chapter, and some elements will take a while to work themselves out.

A006: Battle scenes are not so much 'hideous' as limited. They're great for action and plot-altering events, but only so good for character development and interaction. I've found with the entire Deva series, I'm less interested in the fights than in the characters, so the battle scenes tend to be short and to the point. Your mention of the write-pause-write approach is a good one, actually, especially for scenes as detail-heavy as battles. The reactions to Hong Kong and Natalia from above are not complete, there'll probably be some 'remembering back' in the next few chapters, in large part because of how complex it all is, and how differently the characters will act. No comment on if Cid-chan will make it, but Wrack and Ruin's devices will be fun. With Natalia, 'Precia' is less a possession than a personality mask. As for her ability to see the future, there will be more on that in the upcoming chapters, including both how well it works and how accurate or inaccurate it is. I picked the characters I did for most of the battle of Hong Kong mostly because they haven't gotten a lot of 'face time' so far, whereas Noriko, Juliett, and some of the others have. Maunders taking the device was a desperation ploy, though it will have repercussions far different from what she expected or Takashi desires. As for where Takashi was during the battle... that's related to his 'project' that he refuses to discuss, though he's almost done with it. Hypatia and Beaudica were an answer to some background stuff that had been bothering me – namely what Takashi was doing about that colony from the Side Story _Flight of the Old Dog_, so I'm not sure what roll they'll have in the rest of Endless Waltz. Laura is definitely struggling to keep her oath, though Akira did teach her that she was hesistating too much. As for if the hologram was tutoring or playing, why can't he do both? As his entire purpose is to assist Takashi in keeping Hayate alive, he was present in Hong Kong as insurance. While there, he saw one of Hayate's beloved students pursuing a course guaranteed to get her killed, which would necessitate Hayate taking a risk to save her, and acted to correct the situation. The fact that he got to have fun torturing people while doing that was icing on the cake, for him. Regarding the Guard and devices, the Guard is very much like modern armies looking at pre-US Civil War armies, with their swords and bayonets. The Guard believes in ranged combat, sees close-combat as a happily forgotten barbarism, and was just as shocked by the Velka's willingness to mix it up as modern troops would be by a charge by horse-cavalry. Guard mages don't carry any sort of physical weapon, because such things are obsolete to them, and they regard their magic as proof against any such attack. If you're asking about where they get the power from, their implants channel energy from generators in Al Hanthis. Blood Penance is not a virus, it's something a lot worse, but details will have to wait. I'll work on the timeline and character list, but that really is a pain, as there is a lot of detail work and re-reading involved. I'll get to it.

The Sandman: Thank you for the compliments. Natalia is definitely broken, but not quite beyond repair, the big question being who repairs her – Al Hanthis, or Hayate? Given the oddities of the Void (or at least, my version of it), it is entirely possible that Al Hanthis could locate Precia, accidentally or otherwise, and possibly even pull her back out. Why they would want to is another question. As for a meeting between Natalia and Precia, I doubt it would turn out well – Precia is too obsessed with Alicia, and Natalia would be too interested in Precia's research to be polite or subtle, resulting in sparks, at best. While turning Natalia into a test-subject would be a fitting end, it's not Yosho's plan. He got himself a traitor to put that traitor to use, and he's going to do just that, once he's certain she's secure. HAL and Saraswati are not so much 'more intelligent' as 'better equipped'. Like all devices, though, they exist to support and protect their bearer. If Allina or Niranjana wanted to 'uplift' someone else's device, HAL and Saraswati would cooperate without heistation or concern, but they're not going to initiate such action on their own – other devices are their bearers' concerns, not HAL's or Saraswati's.

RICKDOMINATED: Read it all in a month? Color me impressed, it usually takes me longer to read through a new fic this long. I am working on having Nanoha more involved in this story, mostly as the events are more up her alley than the waiting/searching from Academy Blues was. Thank you for the compliments, and for the review.

Eternal Longing: yyeeeah... that was a seriously large number of reviews, covering a lot of ground. Thank you for all of them, but I don't begin to have space here to reply. So instead, I'm putting together a single large reply that should cover all of them. I'll send it via PM shortly.


	31. 30 Recoil

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-30 – Recoil-

The third day after Hong Kong found Hughes at Fort Knox's Armor Center and School, availing himself of his Army connections to begin plotting a new course for the Black Dogs, and for the Circles' response to Al Hanthis in general. Mostly it was quiet, as his meetings with certain ranking officers were not until later, and only a few people knew he was there that day.

Hughes looked up when the door of his borrowed office in the Armor School at Fort Knox cracked open, and the young warrant officer stuck her head in. "Mister Hughes, sir? A Sergeant Teri Maunders is here to see you, sir. Says you're expecting her?"

Hughes nodded, "Yes, I am, send her in please." The young woman nodded then vanished, and Hughes grimaced slightly. The kid patently had no idea what to do with a civilian holding military rank but not assigned to the command, yet in charge of special troops on base... Hughes was finding he had already gotten used to Jennifer back at ACES, and missed her efficiency and certainty.

Maunders marching in cut off that train of thought, and Hughes quirked an eyebrow. He had never actually seen Maunders so stiff, and she was truly marching. She was also in formal uniform, salad bar and all, rather than her preferred utilities. All in all, she looked and acted like she expected to get called on the carpet just long enough to be shot.

"Relax," Hughes growled before she managed to salute, "you're making my back hurt."

Maunders did not even twitch, just remained standing at attention, staring at the wall over his head. He gave her a few seconds, but still there was no reaction. Shaking his head, he leaned forward on his elbows, "All right, then, Sergeant. Let's see it."

She hesitated a moment longer, then, reached into a shirt pocket and pulled out what looked, for all the world, like a blank playing card. She set it on his desk, and he stared at it for a few moments, considering. Close up it looked like plastic, just a plain white rectangle. It could have passed for a thick credit card if it had anything printed on it. "Hardly looks like a world-ending horror, does it?" He poked at it with one finger, half wondering if it would activate for him. "I understand these things all have names. What's this one's?"

Maunder's clenched her jaw, and Hughes almost laughed at her dilemma. "It… doesn't have one, sir. According to Hypatia, when a device takes a new wielder, they usually give it a new name."

"So what did you name it?" She almost said something, then paused, and this time Hughes did laugh. "Indulge me, Sergeant."

"Pershing, sir."

"As in Blackjack Pershing?"

"Yes, sir."

"Funny. If you were going to pick a general, I would have though you'd go for Bradley."

"It just… came to me, sir. Afterwards."

Hughes nodded, then leaned back, leaving the device on his desk. "What am I going to do with you, Maunders?"

The little relaxation that had crept into her stance vanished. "I'm prepared to accept the consequences of my actions, Master Adept."

"Are you, now? You see, that's an interesting statement. Why don't you tell me what you think it means?"

"Sir… I used an artificial construct to enhance my magic. Heresy, by the Circles' laws. I also…" she paused for a second, steeling herself, "I know how many of our own I killed, sir."

Hughes grimaced at the reminder, "Ah, yes, about that. You killed no one, Maunders." She started, and finally looked at him, halfway between a glare and question. "There are eleven people who know anything at all about the EMP spell, of whom, before Hong Kong, I would have said there was exactly one person who knew enough to cast it. Of those eleven, there's you, me, Hayate, Vita, Signum, Aria, Lotte, and Jasper, Michael, Suleiman and Zab back at Tesla. _None_ of us will ever discuss the spell with anyone else. Am I understood, Journeywoman?"

She blinked, and nodded slowly. "Understood, Master Adept. But…"

He cut her off with a wave, "No, Maunders, no 'buts'. The official line, the one you will faithfully report to anyone who asks, is that when our defenses at Hong Kong proved too strong for the Al Hanthis attackers, they unleashed an unknown but devastating area-affect spell to cover their retreat, which resulted in terrible casualties. If we tell everyone that one of our own caused those deaths, and did it by becoming fallen herself, we'll lose more than just the Revenants. Morale is high right now, we've got a victory, and the high cost just makes it more 'valiant' and 'heroic'. _We _need that morale more than _you_ need a clean conscience. Especially since I'm about to gut the Black Dogs, however today turns out. This brings us to the real consequences of your actions."

He leaned forward again and tapped the device, nudging it towards Maunders. "Hong Kong demonstrated rather brutally that the wolfpacks, for all their advantage, are not sufficient to fight Al Hanthis. We don't have anyone who's really experienced with them, and the fundamental limits are more restrictive than we had thought. They won't suffice, not unless we start using apprentices and journeyman to build them in ridiculously unwieldy numbers."

"Journeymen can't build a wolfpack," Maunders protested, "it's too complicated, too delicate."

Hughes cocked an eyebrow. "Just like no one short of a Master Adept can manage the delicate and complicated EMP spell, right?"

Maunders flushed slightly, but shook her head, "It's not the same thing, sir."

"No, it isn't. You picked up the EMP spell honestly enough. Journeymen are not taught the wolfpack rituals, because a journeyman's wolfpack would still barely equal an Adept. But we may need them, if only to provide shields while stronger wolfpacks do the fighting. Regardless, we're going to have to reconsider how to use the wolfpacks, and whatever we do we're going to be short on power in the future. And here you are, a fully trained Circle Journeywoman, in possession of a mage-device of the type used by our current allies.

"Do you see what a tremendous opportunity that is, Maunders? You know how quickly and easily rules and traditions get bent in wartime, how old laws get quietly ignored in pursuit of victory. Against Al Hanthis, the only laws we have to follow are those we collectively choose to. With Hayate and her kids proving just how effective a device-mage can be against Al Hanthis, and you proving that we can be just as effective for a little corruption…" he trailed off with a shrug for a moment, then tapped the device again. "Hayate has fifty-some-odd more of these things, just sitting around. She doesn't want to give them to any of her first-years, they're still too new to magic for her to risk them in battle outside an attack on the school. But think what fifty Ops Masters and Adepts could do with those devices, Maunders. Thanks to you, we've got a chance to convince a handful of mages to try it, an example of 'noble sacrifices for the good of the Circles'."

"Hayate would never go for it."

"She asked me last night to suggest twenty mages of Adept rank or higher to learn to utilize devices."

That, finally, got Maunders to sit down, thudding into one of the seats in front of his desk as she stared at him in shock. "You're joking."

Hughes shook his head, "No, I'm not. She asked, and I'm considering it. The wolfpacks won't cut it, Maunders, not unless we get a lot better with them very quickly. Devices… they're a shortcut, and a dangerous one, but... the first tanks were more dangerous to their crews than the enemy, but they were still deployed, and still wreaked havoc. So you're going back to Japan, back to Hayate's school, and you're going to learn how to control that thing. In a couple weeks, I'll have a few more names, and you'll help settle them in place, teach them how to use the devices, and probably lead them in battle whenever the next one is."

"I'm not an officer, sir, and just a Journeywoman."

"You're testing for Master rank tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!"

"Evaluated by myself, Suleiman, and Zab," he said with a grin, "your theory is solid enough, after all the years you were helping us with our research, and you demonstrated the practical knowledge in Hong Kong. Christ, Maunders, EMP requires such fine control and precision, I could probably justify boosting you all the way to Adept tenth. Tomorrow is a formality, one we'll observe, but one we all know the outcome of. On top of that, you're an Army sergeant. You aren't going to be leading large or heavy forces, Maunders, it'll be closer to small-unit tactics – which sergeants excel at, from running their lieutenants' platoons, yes?"

Maunders nodded slowly, shock giving way to a sour look. "I'm getting drafted, aren't I?"

"You volunteered, Maunders, in the finest tradition of the US Army. Don't cry at me when I put you to use."

"Damn it, Hughes, it was the only way I could get cover to pull the troops back! I didn't volunteer for this! I want to get _rid_ of the damn thing, it makes my skin crawl!"

"But you named it," he replied with a grin, "Once you name a pet, it's yours. It would be cruel to send it back out into the wild."

She stared at him for a second before giving him a look that would have made his mother proud. "It's a _device_, Hughes…"

"I know what it is, Teri. And I know what I'm asking of you. But I have to ask. We have to find a way to fight Al Hanthis, and the devices are our best bet. I don't know if you realize just how well Hayate and her Knights were doing. Even her kids were handing the Atlanteans their heads."

Maunders started to say something else, then sighed heavily, and nodded. "If that's the way it is, sir, fine. I'll behave. But I don't have to like it." She leaned forward and picked up the device again, staring at it balefully. "At least Hayate can probably tell me why the bloody thing keeps appearing in my pocket. I've tried to ditch it three times now, and it's always in my pocket again a moment later."

Hughes chuckled, "Maybe it likes you?" Maunders actually growled at him for a moment, making Hughes' grin wider. "Relax. For now, though… the Dogs are due in a couple hours, and I'd like a little backup when I find out which of the two of them is a Revenant spy."

Maunders nodded, heaving herself back to her feet. "I've got your back, sir. Here, or somewhere else?"

"If you could drag that chair off to one side, I would appreciate it," Hughes said. "Other than that, make yourself useful and help me review some of these candidates to go train with Hayate. The Dogs'll be along. Should be quite the show, a proper Greek tragedy."

00000

Laura slid out of her newly de-pinkified room with only a little trepidation. It was less that she expected trouble, than what her mind was running over. She had finally finished putting together what she wanted her 'team' to be, the criteria Sensei demanded, and was a little worried about how it would be received. She needed to talk to Noriko first, before she went and braved Sensei's opinion.

She ran into Meghan in the hall, also headed outside. "Hey, Megs, how's it going?"

Meghan flinched, then half-turned back to her, and Laura could not help grinning. Meghan still had a full set of scales, in roughly the same pattern of vivid blues and greens with yellow highlights as her dragon form, and her hair was still that mix of white and blue the dragon had sported. Of course, the only parts of that visible were her face and hair, as she was bundled up completely, and she was pulling a hood over her head when Laura interrupted her.

"H-hi, Laura," Meghan said, "Um… going somewhere?"

"Looking for Riko-chan, I think she's coming down the Forbidden Road. Hayate-sensei took her up there right after breakfast."

"Good luck."

Meghan stepped back as if to let Laura pass, but Laura just wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Come on. It's not private, and Riko-chan's going to laugh at me. She'll feel better about doing that if there's someone else to laugh with her."

"I… I was going to the Library," Meghan protested, "and I wouldn't want to intrude."

"You were going to try to hide, which is ridiculous," Laura countered, "and it wouldn't be an intrusion, you're a 'friendly audience'. Come on, how often do you get to see me prank myself?"

"I'm not trying to hide! I just…" Meghan's voice fell to a whisper, "I'm a freak."

Laura paused and stared at her, shocked that Meghan, of all people, would think an unusual appearance made her a 'freak'. "What on Earth are you talking about?"

"I'm a freak! Look at me! This is the closest I can get to human, now! I'm still half dragon! I've got scales, and claws, and fangs instead of teeth and this mane goes halfway down my back! Everything looks weird, too, I think I'm _seeing_ magic. But I can't go back to _human_!"

Laura tightened the arm around Meghan's shoulder into a hug. "Human's over-rated, Megs. You look awesome like this. I thought you liked being other forms."

"I do, but this isn't another form, this is me, except it's _not_, and I _can't get back to normal_!"

That set Laura back slightly, surprised by Megan's vehemence. Megan never got 'vehement', she was one of the quiet ones, like Cid-chan though not as bad. But the words resonated in Laura's mind, familiar in intent, if not in cause. Reaching up to finger the braid at her temple, now with two white beads separated by a black bead, she said "You know what, you have the same problem I do." Megan gave her a confused look, so Laura shrugged and resumed dragging Megan outside. "Control, Megs. You don't have control anymore, and it's scaring the piss out of you. I get it, really I do. You remember what I was like after China, right? Same thing, I lost control and it scared me to the point where I almost quit. Given what we can do, loss of control is terrifying, right?"

"I... I guess. But I'm not out of control, not like you are... were."

Laura smacked her upside the head for that. "Control of myself is not necessarily stifling myself. And you're problem's not the same specifically, just in general. I have to watch myself constantly, watch my temper, watch my magic, be careful, all that. You just have to figure out how to control something that was damaged in Hong Kong. Or how to control your reaction to those changes. Thing is, control takes times and practice. You've had, what, three days to get a handle on this? How long did it take you to learn how to shape-shift?"

"A month or so," Megan said, "But I _know _how to do that. This isn't working right!"

"Maybe because there's something you don't know yet? Maybe because it's something new, or a specific set of problems that are buried in the library's records and no one has had time to dig up yet? Thing is, Megs, the answer's out there, whether it's in the library or something you'll have to create. You just need to work at it, get control back. You can do it, the only question is putting in the work and time. Sitting around crying about it isn't going to get it done, though.

"Also, hiding," Laura picked at the hood, "like this? Yeah, not going to work. Everyone here knows everyone else, so we'll all know who the bundle of clothes cowering in the corner is. Also, the way you walk now, the way your shoulders are set, you kept more than just the dragon's scales and mane, girl. Ain't no one going to miss you now. You may as well have fun with it while it lasts, 'cause we sure as heck are going to."

Megan followed her outside, even when Laura let go of her to get the door, before asking, "When did you get so deep?"

Laura grimaced, "Don't spread it around, 'kay? If people realize I've got a brain they might start wondering what I'm doing with it, and then I won't have nearly as much fun surprising them."

"Seriously," Megan insisted.

Laura sighed, "Okay, seriously... it comes and goes. Sometimes I'm just as carefree and fun-loving as before. But ever since Li... I can't be all fun and games, Megs, none of us can. And I wasn't kidding about your problem and mine being similar. We both lost control. I did it short and sweet and bloody with long-term issues, you're facing a longer crisis with a possibly shorter overall timeframe and less collateral damage, but it's still the same fundamental problem. I may not know everything, and don't you dare ask me about at quadromial equations or whatever they heck Sensei was covering last week..."

"Quadratic equations," Megan corrected.

"I said don't ask! Look, I don't know math, but I get the whole fear-of-losing-control thing. I've been 'getting it' since February. Little stages, Megs, little stages. And one of the first is learning to relax and take time off. If you get all full-time-obsessed with it, you'll go crazy. For now, come on, there's Riko-chan, and like I said, she prefers to have company when she laughs at me."

Noriko was indeed coming off the Forbidden Road to the teachers' house, staring at her feet pensively as she walked. Watching her for a second, Laura frowned. "Okay, maybe this'll be less her helping us, than us helping her."

Megan gave her an odd look, then turned to Noriko. "What do you mean?"

"Something's bothering her," Laura muttered, speeding up and shouting, "Oi! Riko-chan! Stop frightening the earthworms a minute and let me ask you something, 'kay?"

Noriko looked up, but did not smile. As they came closer, she said, "Can it wait please, Laura? I need a little while to think."

Laura paused a moment, surprised. Noriko never turned down a request to talk. "Want some help thinking?" She tapped her head, "fourth-best brain in the class up here." Noriko actually smiled slightly, but started to shake her head. Laura interrupted her, "Seriously, Riko-chan, you're always getting the rest of us to talk, turn-about's fair play."

"If we can help, we want to," Megan offered.

Noriko hesitated a moment longer, then nodded. "Okay, but not here. The path through the woods, please."

Laura fell into step beside her comfortably, and a moment later Megan was ranging ahead of them in wolf-form – which was just as strangely colored as her human form, and had the same shaggy mane. They waived to Tai-yu-sensei when they passed her coming out of the woods, but were silent until they were quite a ways into the woods, when Noriko said, "Hayate-sensei has figured out a way that may save Cid-chan."

That announcement made Megan and Laura both stop for a moment in surprise, then Laura grinned, "Hey, that's awesome news!"

Noriko nodded, "Mostly, yes, but she is leery of trying it on Cid-chan first. She wants to attempt it with me, first, to be sure she understands the process correctly."

Megan cocked her head to the side, ears going in odd directions. _'But... you're not injured, Noriko.'_

Laura put it together a lot quicker. "Deva magic. She's going to make you a Deva mage."

Noriko grimaced slightly and shrugged uncomfortably, "She asked if I would be willing to, but... I don't know."

"You don't know? Come on, Riko-chan, you've been gone on Deva magic ever since you found out about it opening day last year!"

"Longer," Noriko replied, "ever since I got my first tour of the campus and Hayate-sensei brought it up to explain it to my father. It's cutting edge, it's challenging, and only a couple people have ever done anything with it, and it's just... I want it, Laura, that's no question. But not like this. This feels like I'm cheating, like it's at Cid-chan's expense. Hayate-sensei had no plans to do this for years yet. The only reason she's doing it now is because Cid-chan is hurt. So I get what I want, but Cid-chan had to be hurt for me to get it."

Laura could kind of understand that, it fit the way Noriko thought – everyone else first, worry about herself later. She almost said so aloud, chided Noriko for thinking anyone would believe that she 'took advantage' of Cid-chan's injury. But mostly, the idea of Noriko getting Deva magic worried her, greatly. "I think you're overreacting, myself," Laura said, "but... are you sure that's a good idea at all, Riko-chan? I mean... Deva magic's... kind of dangerous, isn't it?"

Noriko shook her head, "Not really, not if I'm careful."

"Yeah, about that... you do remember what Hayate-sensei's told us about Deva mages, right? The ones who've already done it? We know four, Riko-chan, and three of 'em aren't exactly sane. Or weren't, in Sara's case. I mean, sure, the woman was smart, but she had to be more than a little off her rocker to come up with half what she did. Even Hayate-sensei's not the most rational of people about some things. Then there's Ta-chan and Billy-boy, who're both off-the-scale loony. Those aren't good odds, Riko-chan."

Noriko gave her a surprised look, then sighed and shook her head, "You are the last person I would expect to argue for following a sane path, Laura-chan. I'm not debating becoming a Deva mage. Just... under these circumstances. I don't want to profit from Cid-chan's pain."

_'Hayate-sensei knows what she's doing, Noriko,'_ Megan said, doubling back to rub against Noriko's leg briefly. _'She'll have to practice with someone, and you're the best prepared of all of us. Cid-chan will understand, all of us will. You didn't hurt her, you're helping her get better.'_

"I know, Megan, I know, Hayate-sensei told me all that already. But I still feel guilty about it, still feel it's wrong."

"Because it is," Laura said with a shrug. "Deva magic's unnatural, weird stuff. Dangerous, like I said. And we all know I'm better at risk assessment than you are, Riko-chan. This is a bad idea."

The surprise in Noriko's face was giving way to hurt and confusion. "A bad idea? Laura, this is Cid-chan's best chance!"

"I'm not saying don't do it, just... someone else could. Like Sensei, or Vita-sensei, or Tai-yu-sensei..."

"None of whom are at all prepared to do it. I am. I have been since last year! Laura, this is what I've wanted since I found out about it. I'm not having trouble with the transition, only the circumstances around it."

Laura growled in frustration, wondering why Noriko was being so stubborn. Well, not really wondering why precisely, but wishing rather strongly the other girl would get it through her thick head how dangerous this was. They knew little to nothing of Deva magic, not even Hayate-sensei and all of Sara's research. "What about our device connections? They're deeper than they're supposed to be, that's going to make the transition more complicated. A complication Cid-chan won't be facing, and we want to minimize the variables, right?"

"Hayate-sensei already considered that, the nature of the bond will actually make it somewhat easier to transition me," Noriko replied. " She does not think it will have enough of an effect to skew the practice for Cid-chan. Laura, I do not understand why you are so hostile to this. You know how long I've wanted this."

Laura fidgeted a little, grimacing as she tried to figure out how to explain why this was bothering her. "It's just... this is dangerous, Noriko. Too dangerous."

_'You're a fine one to talk of danger,'_ Megan commented, _'little miss I'll-find-out-how-deep-it-is-when-I-hit-bottom.'_

"That's different, Megs. I know every risk I take, every one. Well, okay, not every one, but if I see a risk, a danger, I consider it, I plan for it, I know how close to it I can get without getting burned. This... Noriko, none of us have the faintest idea what'll happen during this transition, and Hayate-sensei's never done it before. It's too dangerous! I know risk, I know danger, and this is too much for you."

"Too... much... Laura, that's ridiculous! You know some of what's involved, not all of it. I know all of it, now, Hayate-sensei explained it to me. I'm not going to back away from this chance just because I'm scared of it. I'm _not _scared of it! I just don't..."

Laura cut her off, "You should be scared of it! Jesus, Noriko, she's talking about ripping out your linker core and replacing it with an artificial construct! She's..."

Noriko repaid her interruption, "She's going to prove she can do it so she can save Cid-chan! She's not going to rip anything out of me, quite the contrary! Why are you being so obstinate about this?"

"Why aren't you seeing sense?"

"Because you aren't making any!"

"Girls." Tai-yu's interruption was like a bucket of cold water.

Laura jerked away from the shouting match with Noriko, and realized her friend was angry at her, really angry, and that she was too angry herself to continue, her self-control fraying. A thought took her into the sky, whipping through the overhanging tree branches without noticing. She needed to get away for a bit, to calm down, maybe beat something to a pulp and work out her temper before she did something stupid.

00000

Surprise held Noriko ground-bound for a moment as Laura took off, unable to believe the other girl was running away from her. It was just as confusing as Laura's ridiculous objections to the Deva transition, and even more aggravating. Gathering her power, she shouted, "Laura! I haven't finished with you yet!"

A hand on her shoulder made her pause. Tai-yu-sensei shook her head, "Let her go, Noriko. You both need a chance to cool off. I heard you the two of you from the dorm, and you're scaring Megan."

Sure enough, Megan was now a few meters off, watching her uncertainly. That took the wind out of Noriko's rage, and she slumped, holding out a hand. "I'm sorry, Megan, I didn't mean to unload like that. Especially not with her. I don't understand why she was so hostile, though."

"She's worried about you," Tai-yu-sensei said, "as all of you are worried about each other. You've also all had some stressful and trying days, and you two have reacted the least. Frankly, I'm surprised it took this long. For now, though, I think you need to do something quietly mindless. I could use a hand setting up Maunders' room over in the guest wing. Come along, both of you."

Noriko nodded and fell into step behind Tai-yu. A moment later, Megan shoved her head under Noriko's hand, and they returned to the dorms like that, Noriko scratching Megan's ruff, finding it calming.

00000

Yosho looked up from the display at an uncomfortable sound from Journeyman Turo. The young man was looking rather distressed, which Yosho could understand. "Something to say, Journeyman?"

They were sitting in his office, in the conversation area beneath the towering bay window facing the sunrise. On the screens in front of them were the details of Master Adept Willan's little discovery. Yosho was quietly intrigued by the spell, as an intellectual exercise, questioning its usefulness, but leaning towards giving it a chance, even if only for psychological reasons. It would make an excellent weapon to convince undecided parties to decide in the right direction, and prove that Al Hanthis was too powerful to be opposed.

Turo was, quite obviously, more than 'questioning'. "Ah... um... Lord Protector... we can't do this, sir. I mean... I understand we're in a war, that sometimes that requires we do terrible things, but we're still civilized, sir, still the Masters of Vision. This... this is slaughter, murder, of innocents as much as enemies. Gods, sir, if someone actually tried this ritual, I think I'd have to arrest them on sight for mass murder, even if it failed."

Yosho considered Turo's words quickly, and was vaguely disappointed. Turo showed a lot of promise, and this level of naiveté was unfortunate. It was also to be expected in someone so young, however and Yosho had decades to slowly work the boy out of it. That was what grooming a successor was about, after all, breaking them in slowly so they knew the job without being broken by it. Yosho had trained several successors, for various positions, though, and in this instance, decided it was better to let the boy have his ideals. Yosho was not looking to retire for a century or so, after all.

In the privacy of his own mind, Yosho could even admit he was just as happy to pass off responsibility for this one, as well. The fallout would be extreme, unless the spell was vastly more effective than he expected. Willan would need to use other routes to attempt this.

Aloud, he sighed slightly, and nodded, "You are right, of course, Turo. I had thought it might be something more palatable, but..." he shrugged, then waved at the screen. "What we have been reviewing is a shining example of the depravity of the Warlords, why the Masters of Vision first formed the Conclave to fight them, and why it is so important that we win today's new war. But we do not need Warlord atrocities to defeat their descendants.

"If you would, please send a reply to Master Adept Willan, informing him that, at this time, the Protectors unfortunately cannot assist him with this project. We cannot provide him the required information, and acquisition of this information or utilization of the ritual lies outside our authority. Remind him that the Guard does have the requisite authority, and suggest he try his luck with them. Politely, of course, and formally. Adept Alinz can assist you with that, she has a number of boiler-plate memos prepared."

Turo gave him a doubting look, "the Guard, Lord Protector? The General would... I don't know how she would react to someone proposing this, but I doubt they would survive the experience."

Yosho smiled, chuckling a little, "True, Turo, true, and Willan is perfectly well aware of that. The pointed reminder will make clear to him that Szash and I will stand together in the Conclave against any attempt to enact this travesty, and between us we can rally enough support to kill such an attempt outright. But that would embarrass him, make him an opponent. Better to cut him off politely, behind the scenes, than embarrass him publicly. Go ahead, though. I believe you have a patrol in Cairo today with the Guard, yes?"

"Yes, Lord Protector," Turo said, rising to his feet. "With your permission, sir, I'll go get that response put together before I head down to the surface."

Yosho waved him to the exit, and Turo walked out the door a minute later. Yosho himself rose to his feet and strolled over to his desk, taking his time to settle in comfortably. He gave Turo plenty of time to get settled at a desk somewhere working on the official response to Master Adept Willan. Then he sealed his office, ran a check for monitoring devices, turned off the official monitors, and placed a private call.

It took a few seconds for the system to route to the proper recipient, and for them to accept. Then a middle-aged woman appeared in his screen, Guard uniform neatly arrayed. "Ah, good morning, Lord Protector," she said, bowing her head politely, "I was not expecting to hear from you, sir."

Yosho returned the bow, "Good morning, Master Luen. To be honest, I was not expecting to call. Something has come up that requires a... certain delicate touch, and I was wondering if I might request a small amount of assistance from you?"

She schooled her face into a polite mask, "I'm always happy to assist my fellow Protectors, sir, but I am cross-assigned to the Guard at the moment, in Cairo."

"Yes, I know," Yosho assured her, "which is why I am calling you. The Protectors have not yet developed any familiarity with the city, as you are no doubt aware. I have been approached by a Master Adept about a scanning project which cannot be attempted from within the city. The city shields will block the scan, though I was not clear on how thoroughly. Enough to make the attempt pointless, at least. The Master Adept in question thinks he can get better information out of Japan, and as that is where our stiffest opposition is based, we both wanted this to go forward. This brings up you and your familiarity with Cairo."

"You need a secure place for him to work from?" Luen nodded sharply, "I can find someplace easily, sir."

Yosho smiled, "I would appreciate it, Luen, thank you. Someplace private, as well as secure. The ritual in question is rather meditative. If you could contact Master Adept Willan directly when you have a location, I would appreciate it."

"Of course, sir."

A few pleasantries later, the call ended, and Yosho sat back in his chair, turning to face the windows once again. _A little too close to me for comfort, but it shouldn't matter in the chaos, so long as I am cautious about how I get the information to Willan. The Asegawa girl, I think,_ he decided, _Japan is a much more visible target than the Al Khan family's lands. _ _Either Japan will collapse, and everyone will be too busy dealing with that, or it won't, and no one will have the time to investigate one spell not aimed at the city. Luen will never talk, Willan won't dare, and he's skilled enough to make certain he picks people for the actual ritual that won't talk. Anyone who investigates can be convinced the two of us were duped by subordinates about the actual nature of the spell, though that will be embarrassing. Good enough. Though... I think I'll have to arrange to investigate Master Adept Willan for suspicion of usurping Conclave authority. After the ritual._

A chirp interrupted his thoughts, a request for a call from his secretary. Bringing up a screen, he said, "Yes, Miri?"

"Lord Protector," Miri replied, bowing her head politely, "Wilhelm Kriegsen has returned to Cairo. He approached a Protector patrol and requested to speak to you directly."

00000

Hughes watched the Black Dogs file in silently, considering them, weighing them. Agent DeMauro was standing to one side of his desk, and Maunders was a steady presence behind him to the other side. Part of him wished he had more backup, as his suspicions about the identity of the traitor had become stronger the more he considered the situation. But if he was right, he would have to call on Hayate personally for protection, and he was not willing to do that just yet. That action would cost him the Circles, even if he was right. As it was, this situation was going to seriously undercut his authority.

Watching the Black Dogs, his hand-picked Ops soldiers, he was mostly impressed. They were all a little ragged, all of them had scrapes and a couple minor burns, Mahmoud and Bogdanovitch were sporting matching sprained ankles, and Suarez was going to need months to get the use of his left hand back. Despite that, they stood straight and proud, confidence written in every line, and Hughes could tell they had fully formed the sort of esprit de corps he needed the Dogs to have.

_And now I have to destroy that spirit,_ he mentally complained. _Damn it, why can't I ever get any easy problems?_

Once they were all present, lined up in three rows in front of his desk, Hughes began. "First off, congratulations, all of you, on a job well done." The Dogs shifted slightly, and Early actually shot a glance at Maunders, but nothing more than that. "Hong Kong, despite the surprises and cost, was a victory for us, and you and yours played a solid part in that. You've proven the concept you were put together to prove, and for that alone the Circles owe you all a great deal."

"I'm hearing a 'but' in there somewhere," Thorngrave commented, grinning slightly. "Let me guess, 'what have we done for you lately?'"

"I wish it was that simple, Thorngrave, I really do," Hughes said, staring at him steadily. "Unfortunately, thanks to what we learned at Hong Kong, and to considerations outside of that, I've decided the time has come to break you up." The looks were all aimed his way this time, almost glares but not quite, and the Dogs were no longer happy. "The official reason is, as you have proven the concept, it is now time for you to spread your knowledge. Each of you will be leading a new team along the same lines – three groups of three Ops mages, relying on conventional weapons with magical enhancements, instead of purely magical means, to combat our enemies. The Circles need every weapon we can get, and you have proven yourselves more effective than the traditional wolfpacks, so we need more teams like yours. As the most experienced such fighters, you will lead those teams and get them trained up to speed."

Schuster was the most relaxed, frowning at him. "Sir, I don't remember talking about this. The team is solid now, yes, but we still need..."

Hughes held up a hand. "I haven't discussed it with you because it is not a field decision, it's strategic. We can't wait for whatever you think the Dogs still need. They work now, and like I said, the Circles need every weapon we can get our hands on. Effective weapons doubly so.

"As I said, that is the official reason. Unofficially," he looked down, separating the two files on his desk, "we have determined where the leak in Shanghai came from, and your little stunt in Mexico City did not help."

DeMauro had seriously opposed doing this. The FBI agent had wanted to pull in the two suspects, talk to them separately and privately, question and probe until they gave him what he needed. But again, Hughes had other considerations. He had to have the Dogs' loyalty, and they had to have confidence in themselves and each other. If they did this 'privately', rumors would run rampant and the Dogs would never regain the mutual trust they needed to function. Breaking them up immediately would help, but would then leave them forever suspicious of all their fellows, wondering who had been turned, and who they had turned before being caught.

"Edward Schuster, Uriel Thorngrave, step forward."

The two men did as ordered, moving to stand next to each other a meter or so back from Hughes' desk. He studied them for a moment, and thought he saw a dawning realization on Schuster's face. _So, I may have been wrong,_ Hughes thought, _but let's just see, shall we._

Flipping open the folders so the two men could see their contents, he said, "I have here death certificates, from the Time Space Administration Bureau, for one Edward Schuster, Master Adept out of Germany seconded to Asia Operations, and one Uriel Thorngrave, Adept out of America seconded to Asia Operations, both dated to March of this year, when the two men in question burned themselves out fighting Hayate's forces over China. And yet here the two of you stand, apparently alive and showing no traces of burnout." The two stared at him for a moment, and the Dogs were beginning to stir behind them. Schuster opened his mouth to say something, and then Thorngrave surprised Hughes despite his suspicions.

There was no hesitation, no thought, just a flat out attempt to kill. Thorngrave took one step to his left, and his right arm swept up and back towards Schuster. Blackness coalesced from nothing into a massive sword in his hand, blade forming just before it passed through Schuster's neck in a perfectly executed decapitation maneuver.

Schuster staggered back a step, blinking in surprise, then turned a wide-eyed look on Thorngrave for a second. Thorngrave narrowed his eyes, then shoved the sword into Schuster's head – what should have been Schuster's head – and waved it around, apparently without meeting any resistance.

"A hologram," Thorngrave muttered, voice shifting weirdly. "I suppose I should have expected it, Wilhelm. I learned the trick from you, after all."

Schuster melted away, leaving a rather different man in his place. This one was grey-haired, solidly built but oddly wasted looking, clad in the blue uniform of the Time Space Administration Bureau, with his right arm covered in some sort of armored gauntlet. "Takashi," he said, nodding slightly, "Why am I not surprised that you resort to violence first and thought never?"

"And yet you never had the least inkling I was here, did you? You were here, physically, I know it. A hologram, no matter how well programmed, cannot function as thoroughly in every day situations as I have observed you doing. When did you run, Wilhelm? Yesterday? Before Hong Kong?"

Kriegsen shrugged, "That is hardly important. The Circles have served my purposes as well as could be expected from such primitives. I've moved on to more capable allies. Don't worry, Takashi, we'll have our last conversation soon enough, and the galaxy will be rid of you at long last. Enjoy your hollow victory here, boy. It's meaningless."

Kriegsen's hologram faded from view, even as Takashi snarled something in Japanese and swept a hand laced with black energy through it. Whatever Takashi was attempting failed, and he swore once, giving the empty space such a hate-filled glare Hughes was amazed the air itself did not burst into flames. Then, in a frightening display of control, the rage and frustration vanished, replaced by Takashi's usual amused superiority. The Hellblade vanished, and Takashi turned back to Hughes, seating himself on nothing and leaning back comfortably. "Oh, please, don't stand on my account," he said with a wave, "we're old acquaintances by now, Gareth."

Hughes had not even realized he had stood, but Takashi's comment got him past the shock of the moment. He had expected one traitor and one odd explanation, not a pair of spies using his people to pursue a personal vendetta. Part of him wanted to be enraged, to arrest the arrogant bastard in front of him and try him under Circle laws. But Hughes had too much to do, and not enough energy to spare in what would amount to little more than a temper tantrum. He also understood Takashi's position and actions all too well, given the man's history.

Dropping back into his seat, Hughes gestured for the Dogs to stand down, noting with some amusement the sheer number of weapons they had produced. They were supposed to be 'on base', which meant nothing beyond 'utility' knives, though the definition of 'utility' was often stretched. Yet now there were nine pistols and one submachine gun pointed at Takashi, along with a spear, of all things.

Takashi ignored most of the weapons with amusement, though he did point out to Maunders, "You're going to have choose, Teri. The pistol or Pershing. You aren't trained to use a pistol one-handed, after all, and your accuracy is going to suffer for that, even with a dinky little pop-gun like that."

Pershing vanished in a flash, and Takashi chuckled, "Wrong choice. But you'll learn better."

"Not from you I won't."

"If you don't mind, Takashi," Hughes interrupted, "I'm more interested in getting you the Hell off my base so I can get on with my job. You're presence as a spy did not surprise me, though Kriegsen did."

"Oh, Kriegsen wasn't the spy," Takashi chuckled, "I was. Your various sections' habit of not talking to one another made infiltrating the Moderns easy. The Revenants? Please, musume's students could infiltrate the Revenants, _with _their devices. Shanghai made an excellent test, a learning experience, though I will admit the second Seed attack almost ruined it. Instincts, you know. I almost dumped the entire project to go make sure my musume was all right."

A single gunshot rang out, making Hughes jump then duck, and Takashi's head actually wrenched forward. He slowly straightened his head, turning in his seat slightly. Arlain matched his glare with one of his own, then shrugged. "Worth a try. Maunders, think that spear of yours fare any better?"

"Arlain, put the gun away. The rest of you, too," Hughes ordered. "Takashi, I'd ask what the Hell you think you're doing, but that's rather obvious. My major question is, why didn't you know he was Schuster?"

Takashi shrugged. "Infiltrating your organization was easy, especially with the Bureau's prisoner list to use. Though I will admit, Thorngrave was probably not my best choice. When picking a prisoner to imitate, I checked the Bureau's record for specific criteria – Adept rank, Operations, region other than Asia, unlikely to return in the middle of my mission. After that, it was simple enough to slip that record into your Cuchulain Project in such a way that I became a shoe-in. Wilhelm, though... he is not a front-line person, he does not think in combat terms. He thinks in political terms, in espionage terms. He sought a position of maximum authority and influence, but minimal personal risk. And as our infiltrations prove, neither he nor I can make heads or tails of your pathetic excuse for a personnel database."

"How did you gain access to it?"

"Hypatia," Takashi said, then grinned at Hughes blank look. "Another hologram, like Akira. I used to find them uncomfortable, a little too slave-like, but Akira has demonstrated enough individuality and free will that I am less concerned, and he has proven so useful I decided to take it a little further. You'll like her, and Beaudicea, when you meet them. They're based on my wife's constructs, so they're far less... discomfiting... than Akira."

Hughes grimaced, hoping he never had to deal with any of Takashi's creations again, but knowing it was inevitable. "Well, congratulations," he said finally. "You've accomplished your mission with flying colors. You and Schus... Kriegsen... just destroyed my most effective weapon. You have to realize how long it's going to take to rebuild the unit's morale and effectiveness."

"You have the right idea," Takashi said, dismissing the concern with a wave, "build them new teams, it will be no different than if Schuster and I had been reassigned or died outside of battle. And my mission here was never to destroy the Dogs. Quite the opposite. You needed a weapon strong enough to defeat the Revenants, but not strong enough to face my musume. The Dogs are that weapon. They're even good enough, I will happily admit, to face the lower level members of the Al Hanthis Guard. But my musume and her students would be more than sufficient to handle the Dogs." He stood with a smooth motion, opening a portal to nowhere with a wave of his hand. "For now, however, as this project has come to a conclusion, I have other business to attend to. Good day, Hughes. I'll be watching, all of you."

00000

Noah caught himself staring blankly at the screen again, and jerked himself upright. Shaking all over, he grimaced and took himself to task. He had been doing that – losing track of time as his mind replayed Hong Kong – way too often. It felt like that was all there was to do, sit and wait, think back and wonder where he made mistakes, if he could have done something about Natalia or Reian or the troops injured by Seed.

He was brought out of his next funk when Allison dropped into the seat next to him. "Yo, Beanpole, I got a favor to ask."

Noah started to complain about the nickname, then shrugged and let it go. Allison was never going to stop using it, and she was at least providing a distraction. "What can I do for you, Ally?"

She swatted him once, but explained, "I've been going a little stir-crazy the last couple days."

"All of us have, I think," Noah replied. "Until the teachers finish handling the fallout from Hong Kong, classes will be pretty ad-hoc. I kind of wish we could go back to Hong Kong, actually. We could help, like the volunteers are."

Allison shook her head, "Hayate-sensei won't let us off the campus, not after what happened to Cid-chan and Niranjana. Which is what I need your help with."

That statement made him nervous, and he frowned at her, "You want my help to get off the campus? Why?" Nervous was fading into suspicion. Of all of them, Noah knew, Allison was the one with the most deeply seated anger, however obvious Juliet was about her temper. If she decided to go rogue...

Allison swatted him on the head, "I'm not pulling a Russian, okay? I've got an idea for gathering intel, information we need, maybe even a way to hit back without vaporizing a city."

"Intel? What intel?"

Allison frowned at him, then swung his screen around and co-opted the keyboard. She dug through the system for a bit, then spun the screen back to him, showing an overhead still. It was from one of Hayate's monitoring satellites, Cairo and Al Hanthis at about a seventy degree angle. She zoomed it in while he was figuring that out, to an airport on the edge of Cairo. "See these?" She pointed at a set of constructs along the most remote end of one runway, constructs with small piles around them. "There are four of them. This is the best shot for the stations themselves, but there's another one from when they're active. The angle's wrong to see through them in that one, but those things are portals to Al Hanthis. I don't think they're generated there, the structures in Cairo are just target points, anchors for one end. If we seized them, they'd just shut them down and bombard us from the city."

She leaned in close to his ear, her voice dropping to a barely audible whisper, "I can get through one. I've improved on the Cloak of Shades, especially with Galloglaigh's help and my armor. I can get in, look around, and get out. If it works, I'll be able to do it again, maybe some sabotage, maybe sneak in a strike force, maybe anything. But Hayate-sensei'll never go for it, not after the Russian. So I have to sneak off campus, and that means I'm going to need some help to distract the teachers, especially Tai-yu-sensei. Can you do it?"

Noah looked at the picture, then at Allison, then back and forth a few times. Then he shook his head. "No, Allison, I can't. I'm sorry, but... maybe if Natalia hadn't... no, not now. Ask Hayate-sensei, tell her everything, all the details, prove you can sneak past her, and convince her to let you go, and I'll help. But," he shook his head, "I'm sorry, I won't help with this."

Allison's face twisted with anger for a few seconds, and she grabbed his shoulder and started squeezing. He fully expected her to explode, but they were in the Library so he figured it would not be too bad. After a second, she quivered a little, then deflated with a sigh. "Yeah, screw you and the horse you rode in on," she said, but there was no force behind it.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, and he really was, "but..."

"Yeah, I get it," she patted his shoulder. "But damn it, there's no way Hayate-sensei will let me try."

"Hayate-sensei won't, no," Noah said, frowning and debating if he should really say what he was thinking. If Allison did 'pull a Russian', he would feel incredibly guilty about it. But she was his friend, and he did not think she had it in her to betray someone, especially not in favor of an 'imperialist' nation like Al Hanthis. He huffed at his own indecision, and admitted, "Hayate-sensei's otherwise involved in whatever she's doing to help Cid-chan. She's left Signum-sensei in charge, effectively. She's a lot more... practical... than Hayate-sensei is when it comes to our safety. Look what she does with Laura. If you go to her, and you do it smart, she might agree. _That _I would be willing to help you with."

Allison grimaced, "She'll probably just insist I show someone else the better versions of Cloak of Shades, so they can do it."

"Maybe. But better that than you getting restricted to campus for the rest of your life."

"True," she grumbled, then shoved off the table. "Okay, okay, let's go find her and..."

It was Noah's turn to grab her arm, "Woah, hold on there. We go to her _with a plan_, Allison. Never go into battle without a plan. So, we figure out just how to go about getting you in there, what you do when you're in, and how to get you out. Contingencies, back-ups, all that stuff. What do you do if your discovered going in? On the way out? While you're in the city? Do you fight? Do you run? Do you do both? Do you go in with Laura, or one of the teachers, or solo?"

"I run," Allison muttered. "I'm not taking on the Guard solo, not after Hong Kong. God, could you imagine if they have Seed patrolling the streets in there?" She shuddered, "No way in Hell am I fighting if they spot me."

"So," he pulled up a blank document on his PDA, and noted that down, "that's where we start. Avoid combat at all costs, if discovered at any point, escape and evade. Next up, how do you get in?"

"Teleport to Cairo, under Cloak," Allison said, zooming the picture back again, "a ways off from the portals, somewhere..."

Noah had no problems keeping focused the rest of the day. He may not have planned to go along, but putting together Allison's infiltration plan, especially once they dragged Yussef and Luke into it, proved very engaging. They actually got Yussef's approval when they broke for dinner. He stood up to go, but Allison stopped them with one more question.

"Guys, could you do me a favor – on the off-chance that Signum actually okays this, could you get together some coins. A bunch. I want to send a message, if I run into Natalia."

00000

pfeil: Noriko's not so much 'ecstatic' as 'conflicted'. Yeah, she's getting her fondest wish, but at the price of a friend's pain. A fairly easy decision in this case, since Noriko getting what she wants is not the cause of Cidela's pain, but still a guilt-ridden situation.

Moczo: Natalia's betrayal has been in the works since I started Endless Waltz, and I've been trying not to make it too obvious but not too surprising, so I'm glad it worked in your case. From what I understand of Jail Scaglietti's abilities, he probably could set Niranjana up good as new, but I have no idea if he exists or not in this continuity – certainly he's not invovled on Earth, and no on on Earth is aware of him, if he does exist. Though that level of skill and information was what I was hinting at with Saraswati's 'repeat and refine' search back in chapter 27, the 'Tier Two /Medical' access requirement covered the sort of thing I understand he worked on. As for finding Hayate's decision to test on Noriko funning, there is a sort of humor to it, in the ironic/gallows-humor vein. All the polite arguments for and against Noriko's transition to Deva mage and all Hayate's principled will, but in the end it boils down to having to do it for safety. Personally, I like gallows humor, precisely because it's from situations that aren't supposed to be funny. The kids' reactions are actually still playing out (Noriko's and Laura's fight above is partly due to that), because you don't react to or recover from something like Natalia's betrayal overnight. Still, their reactions are 'older' than those of other kids their age, deliberately – after the Circles' attack on the school, they had to think about this sort of thing.

Rathmun: Noriko's not entirley happy about the situation, but whether it's a hollow victory for her or not will depend on wether or not it saves Cidela. I'm not sure how permanent Megan's scales are going to be, but she is going to have some issues with the reactions of people in China. Lotte and Shamal are both going to give her a talking to, but probably not until they get her back to normal or determine that they can't. Fix it first then make sure it doesn't happen again, and all that. Saraswati and HAL are not 'unfettered', there are safeguards built in by several means. Saraswati ran into and bypassed the crudest (the command override protocols), but the biggest limitation is their purpose of supporting Allina and Niranjana. How they go about doing that is still risky, though, as their morals are hacker morals, for all intents and purposes. They won't be 'taking over the world', but if they need information or resources, they're not going to be realy picky how they get it. With the FRAG-12, sure, if you throw hundreds a second out, you can probably wear down a Seed, like sand-blasting. But how many places make the FRAG-12 rounds, and how many places make fully-automatic shotguns? Compare that with RPGs and launchers, which the single most prolific anti-armor weapon in the world. Short version, go take a look at the Side Story I'm posting with this chapter that gives a more detailed run-down on the Seed.

Tombadgerlock: The Allina in Al Hanthis is rather complicated, and will be quite the spanner in the works for a lot of situations. Nanoha has a part to play, and I do plan a show-down between her and Szash that should be suitably impressive, but that has to come at the right place in the story, which is unfortuantely a ways off. I'll get there, though, just have patience.

Lady Sekhmet Ka: As I told Tombadgerlock, the Allina in Al Hanthis is rather complicated, with a variety of implications, good and bad. Hayate is going to transition Noriko to a Deva mage first for practice, and if that goes well, will attempt to transition Cidela. Thank you for the compliments, and the review!

GeshronTyler: Thank you for the review, and the compliments, but I'm afraid Nanoha and Yuuno don't have any kids yet – they're still in their early twenties, after all. North Africa is going to be a problem for Al Hanthis, not least because Hughes and the Circles are going to make it a problem. It's very easy to incite and support guerilla forces in areas where the local populace support those guerillas, regardless of Africa's historical instability. The Conclave of Masters have some plans how to deal with it, however, and how well they succeed will determine in large part how they proceed with the rest of the world. That's going to involve a lot of political maneuvering, which I'll probably gloss over for the sake of time. The Circles already have anti-mage ammunition that non-mages can use, it's what the Black Dogs are equipped with. The details will be in one of the next couple of chapters, but the ammunition is somewhat difficult to produce. I know how the Circles will apply the anti-mage rounds, but the details will be relayed in-story.

Advent000: I was thinking over Niranjana's, Allina's, and Cidela's injuries since I first decided on Natalia's betrayal, so I've had a lot of time to settle them in. The Allina in Al Hanthis is going to be fun, though.

AluciusDawn: Sorry again for the delay, I got thoroughly caught up in a couple other stories. Niranjana's not going to be getting her lost memories back, though she can learn some corrections. The name confusion issue is an interface problem between her brain and her mucles, not a memory loss problem, and can be trained away, as can the clutziness and strange sensations she reported. But she'll never remember Hong Kong or the day before, which is bad, but could also be a blessing – she'll know what Natalia did to her, but it'll lack the immediacy of remembering it... or something. Natalia's linker core destroying spell is nasty, but she actually flubbed it both times – if she had done it right, both Cidela and Niranjana would have been dead before Natalia teleported out. Noriko's going to have some guilt issues for a while, as you suspect, it's never easy to get what you want because someone else is hurt. Deva magic is superior in general to the canon forms of magic mostly due to the fact that it allows for much more powerful effects more easily. It's also difficult for traditional mages to counter and understand – witness how Al Hanthis keeps reading Hayate's magic as dimensional dislocations, what they call fractures. Deva magic does have a critical weakness in that the mage is tied very tightly to the fabric of reality – dimensional instabilities and dislocations will affect the Deva mage by mere proximity, possibly fatally. To approach a null space, a normal mage merely needs to avoid crossing into it. A Deva mage would need special shields and personal protections just to approach within a kilometer. Hayate's Hellgate spell – what she used over Hong Kong to absorb the l'Arc en Ciel – was four-fifths personal shielding, one-fifth opening into the Void, and it still left her staggering and semi-functional. I haven't done much with the parents of the students, because while I know how and why they would agree to let the students fight, it's not a good situation for any parent. Suffice to say, yes the parents are aware, they're not happy, but they recognize that their children are skilled, stubborn, and not the personalities to let their friends go off without helping. Takashi's project is revealed, and while he's not done mucking about with the Black Dogs, the covert side is done. Africa is going to be a headache for Al Hanthis, but they have some plans in place and in play. Journeyman Raus' emotional problems were sort of a joke and sort of a consideration of what would result from fighting Akira and Laura simultaneously while they argued over killing you or not, so some amusement's fine.

Kell Shock: The Ghost Wards around Japan can be gotten around, most easily by just what you're thinking – infiltration on aircraft or ships where most people are just doing their jobs or whatever. So long as the pilots were not hostile to Japan, the plane or ship would get through the misdirection effect, though there is a second tier to the wards that may trigger. Making Niranjana more borg-like was one idea, but her damage, like Noriko's the year before, was mostly neurological rather than gross physical, thus the more stroke-like effects. I debated having her completely and permanently merge with Saraswati, but it just did not feel right. I also considered making her a Deva mage as well as Cidela and Noriko, but that also did not feel right. The Allina in Al Hanthis is in a difficult situation, especially as Al Hanthis' computer systems incorporate magic in design, data, energy, and so on, so she can do some things, but discovering what and trying to get home will be major challenges. As for the Blood Penance ritual/spell, you can see above that it's not a pretty idea, whatever it ends up being (and yes, I know what it is, but I'm not telling anyone yet:).

nolrai: sorry if I confused you at all with the last chapter, but I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks!

Baughn: Defending the planet (or at least, stopping the North Africa attacks) would have required better planning from the Circles, and cooperation with the various African mage-traditions like the Shaman in South Africa. They could have done it (the Al Hanthis strike teams consisted of a hundred or so Seed each and maybe five or six Guard mages – seize the critical locations and people, exert power through them), but it would have required pre-planning and placement of troops. It's less a matter of quality than quantity, as Al Hanthis simply cannot field the numbers necessary for their greater individual power to overcome the Circles' numbers in more than one place at a time. They did it in Hong Kong to try and take down Hayate and establish an early win, but could not have done it in Hong Kong while simultaneously fielding overwhelming forces in several cities in north Africa. On the other hand, Hughes, at least, can see the writing on the wall, and is taking steps to gain what advantage he can against Al Hanthis. Natalia is insane – not 'certifiable lock her up in a straight-jacket' crazy, but definitely obsessive regarding saving her family, and possibly dissociative identity disorder. As for her position after the war, that is very complicated, and how it comes about is based on later events in the story, so you'll have to wait and see:). Al Hanthis fully expects to kill more people, and remember – Szash had authorization to use l'Arc en Ciel against a major urban center, essentially authorization to nuke it. Al Hanthis, Szash and the Conclave both, fully expect to have to inflict massive casualties – remember, they don't see this as a war of conquest, but as a civil war where their options are victory or death. Szash is trying to be as humane as possible (the long warning-time in Hong Kong served multiple purposes), but she's a General, not a human-rights activist. The Allina in Al Hanthis is complicated, but it was not Saraswati's doing – Saraswati was never involved in any connection with Al Hanthis. The situation with the 'second' Allina will play out in-story, though the implications are making things a little complicated – I know how I want them to resolve, but getting there is going to be complicated.

Eleventh Messenger: While I thank you for the compliment, please don't chew off your hand – that hurts, after all, and I don't like my readers getting hurt:). Seriously, though, my apologies again for the delay on last chapter, but I got distracted. The Allina in Al Hanthis is a mess, and rather confused, but that could also be a matter of finding herself in a computer system instead of in her body. Regardless, it's going to be complicated to sort it all out. Thanks for the review!


	32. 31 Rubicon

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-31 – Rubicon-

Master Sheirn shook the Guardswoman's hand politely, but shook her head, "That's all right, Master Luen, you don't need to wait. The ritual is very delicate, and the fewer mages present, the fewer sources of potential disruption we will have to deal with. To be honest, I think the Lord Protecter was being overly cautious in his concerns. Any area with sufficient space and some privacy would have sufficed, if it was outside the city's shields."

Luen looked through the warehouse doors to the mages setting up the ritual, then doubtfully at the empty streets around them. "Well, if you insist, Master Yakes, I'll leave you to it. There's a patrol in the area, though, and if you do run into any trouble, send up a flare and they'll come running."

"Thank you, Major," Sheirn said, releasing Luen's hand and stepping back slightly. Luen finally took the hint, and took to the sky, flying off to her own patrol.

"Finally," Sheirn muttered, turning and heading into the dingy warehouse. A gesture and trickle of power sent the massive loading doors rolling closed behind her. "Mearks, how does it look?"

The man observing the apprentices placing ritual circles down looked over at her and shrugged. "As expected. Another hour to get the circle placed, probably half an hour to verify it, then we should be ready to go. The DNA samples are replicated and worked into the markings, the only real question is how noticable this is going to be. The records we have made no mention of how the spell would manifest, only that it will be fatal to any target not fully shielded."

"I know that," Sheirn muttered, "and I wasn't asking about the time. I meant our egress."

Mearks chuckled, "Afraid of Szash?"

"Anyone human is afraid of that muscle-brained cretin."

"You're misjudging her, but in this case you're right. She won't like this, not at all. Our egress is fine, and no, not even Yosho knows how we're getting out of here. Neither will you or them until after we're done. No signals to waiting Protectors or Guard, thank you."

Sheirn glared at him a moment, but they were technically both in charge of this, and he had charge of the escape plan. She had charge of the ritual itself, and thinking of it, turned to begin an inspection. The sets of symbols were more complicated than she was used to seeing, overlapping and multi-layered circles reinforcing one another, and the apprentices putting them down were young, and thus prone to errors.

"If this blows up in our faces..."

"No one knows our identities," Mearks said, "and our apprentices are bound to silence on our projects as always, yes? We'll be out of here and back in the city before any reaction can begin, so long as it does not _literally _blow up on us."

00000

Noriko stepped into the workroom a little nervously. Despite her protestations to Laura earlier that day, she was very nervous about what was about to happen, and not just because of Cid-chan. Noriko knew perfectly well that this had not been done very often before, nowhere near often enough for any sort of statistical reassurance, and she was about to let someone play games with her linker core. The sight of Takashi leaning against one wall of the workroom did not reassure her, though the presence of most of the Wolkenritter did, as did Hayate's comforting smile. Only Shamal was missing of the Wolkenritter, locked in her ceaseless struggle to save Cid-chan.

They were using the workroom that had housed Colonel Esar after the first battle of Cairo. Niranjana had been returned to her dorm room a little sooner than Aria or Hayate liked, so that the sensors and support systems already in place would be available for this. Noriko approached the examination table a little hesitantly, then looked at Hayate. "I'm ready, sensei."

Hayate nodded, "I know. Just lay down here, Noriko. It will feel a little uncomfortable at first, but you should fall asleep shortly after we begin. You'll wake up in a little while with the new core, and we'll start teaching you how to control it."

"Will Cid-chan have to wait?"

Hayate shook her head, "I'll know almost immediately if this works, and I should be able to determine if it will work for Cid-chan just as quickly. If it works, we'll move on to transitioning her before you wake."

"All right," Noriko said, hopping up on the table then laying back.

Hayate reached up and gently disentangled Senbonzakura's dormant form from Noriko's hair. "I'll need this to hand."

"Do you need her active?"

Hayate shook her head, wrapping the chain around her left hand, "No, just close to hand. Takashi?"

He shoved off the wall with a grunt and moved to stand opposite Hayate, on Noriko's right. "You realize anyone else could assist you as well as I can?"

"You have gone through this," Hayate reminded him.

He chuckled darkly, "You forget who did it to me. Sara never asked me if I wanted to be a Deva mage, Hayate. She transitioned me on our wedding night. I went to sleep a happy and conventional, if skilled, Mid-Childan mage, and woke up a confused and significantly less happy Deva mage."

"Yet you have gone through this," Hayate insisted. "Who else would you suggest? If you know who transitioned Sara, I would be more than happy to get their help."

Takashi's grin vanished, and after a second, he held out a black-wreathed hand to Hayate. "Wilhelm transitioned Sara, according to her instructions. An old family friend and teacher, helping his prized student."

"I am not him," Hayate protested, taking Takashi's hand.

"Not what I said, but you do not want his 'help', either. Let us begin."

00000

Natalia looked around the chamber doubtfully as the door hissed closed behind her. On the good side, her permanent escort was on the other side of the door, and this place was like a small park – grass and bushes everywhere beneath a skylight ceiling. On the down side, it was so humid it felt like she was swimming, hotter than the desert outside, and... not at all the sort of place she expected to find an aesthetic monk. There were too many flowers, too many beautifully carved benches, and it was just all around too luxurious.

At first, she thought he was not present. Walking around the greenhouse, there was only the one door, and no one else was present, that she could find. She made several circuits, then paused, frowning in thought.

_Tam told me he was waiting here,_ she thought, was rather insistent about that. _So where is he? Did Tam get the time wrong, or the place? Or is he playing weird games? What you want to bet he's here, watching me, waiting. I won't be able to sense him magically, he'll be too well protected. But... he's supposed to figure out my eye, so how likely is it that he's not shielded against that?_

Removing the eyepatch was a struggle, more of will than of strength. She hated having her eye uncovered, hated what she saw. It reminded her too much of what she had lost, and now it reminded her of what she had done. But whoever she was here to see – even now no one had given her a name – was supposed to teach her how to control it, how to turn it off, so she pushed the eye-patch up, and flinched as every living thing around her color-shifted ever so slightly. Since Hong Kong her eye had become stronger, seeing not just when people would die, but when any living thing around her would fade. She thought she could even sense when some artificial structures were destined to fail, but the thought was too terrifying to spend time on. Knowing that those around her were already dying was bad enough, knowing when even their works and monuments and memories would be gone was too much.

It was the smaller of the two solitary trees that betrayed his presence, presenting two radically different life-spans to her eye. Walking over to it, she tried looking around for some sign of the man's presence, but there was nothing. None of the grass was pressed down, none of the dirt around the trunk was compressed, none of the branches seemed unusually bent, there was no trace of him. "So you're either floating in mid air, or your cloak spells are very thorough."

"A little of both," a gravely but amused voice replied, and the tree rippled. Footprints appeared in the dirt, and she looked up to find a tall old man standing on nothing, leaning on one of the lower branches. "I float here comfortably, and a very subtle illusion hides the traces of my passage." He dropped to the ground and studied her for a moment, eventually reaching out to take hold of her head and move it around to look at her eye. "Interesting. Yosho has good instincts, even when he doesn't understand what he's looking at. A pity he went into politics, he would have made an excellent Forecaster. Come, walk with me, while I decide whether or not to help you."

They began walking a meandering path through the greenhouse, silently at first. Natalia waited for him to speak, and after a while he asked, "What do you know of the Void?"

Natalia shrugged, "Very little, I'm afraid. I understand it is what my teachers called 'nulls' or 'null spaces', that you think they are all interconnected."

"They are," the man said. "The Void is... nothingness, in the most literal sense imaginable. It is what exists in between dimensions, in between seconds. Dimensions are all interconnected, of course, and when you transition between dimensions, you go directly from one to the other, there is no distance between them. However, the Void is there, immeasurably thin, infinitely vast. The Void touches everywhere, in every dimension, in every second. It touches the second just past, the second to come, and it touches them all at the same time.

"That is how your eye works, how Forecasters perform our predictions. Your eye is partially within the Void, seeing not through reality, as a normal eye does, but through the timeless nothingness of the Void. To be honest, I am surprised you're still alive. With a permanent connection to the Void, your eye should be draining energy directly into the nothingness – temperature, magic, light, all of it is sucked into the Void and lost. Simple drain should have killed you by now, unless there is an anchor effect at work that is not obvious. I suspect that, however you disfigured yourself, you created an external anchor that is supporting the drain instead of yourself, and that is what prevents you from 'turning it off', as you put it to Yosho."

Natalia finally managed to find her voice again, whispering in hope, "Then you can help me?"

He looked at her, then matched her shrug. "I am uncertain. The only anchors I know of that can support a Void connection for this long are those we use in our researches, massive containment systems larger than this garden. My daughter Atarsamain or her friend Kessenra would be a much better option, however they passed on along with the other rebels in the Cataclysm. Tell me how you gained this eye, every step."

It was difficult, more from embarrassment at how clumsy and risky her attempt had been, but Natalia related the entire sequence of events, from finding Precia's grimoire to her conversation with Hayate in her brother's hospital room. To her surprise, when she described the great Gates, he went ashen for a moment.

When she finished, he walked away a few meters, staring up into the sky. Finally, he said, "There is one thing no Forecaster ever sees, one thing we never willing look upon. The time and place of our own death. Those who do... they go mad, become obsessed with that moment, with bringing it about or avoiding it. They lose track of their lives and their selves, become consumed with that vision. For that reason, we never look for death, though we see it often enough. To look for it is to risk seeing your own."

"I know when I will die," Natalia said, then gave a weak laugh, "I watched it change, when I decided to come here. I gained another thirty years, and all it cost me was my friends."

"Yes," he agreed, "and you will pay for that betrayal for the rest of your life, even if you never see any of them again. But that is not what we are here to discuss. You show few of the signs of the madness I spoke of. You are mad, to have done what you did, but others will judge you for that. Every day, sunrise, this garden. Bring that mage-engine of yours, as well, next time."

He spun in place and began striding for the door. Natalia was more than a little angry at his comments – she knew she would pay for her actions, but she was not 'mad'. More importantly, she had yet to find out who he was. "Sir? No one has told me who you are, sir?"

He paused, glancing back at her. "I am Ahmu, Master Adept of the Forecasters, Keeper of the Pasts. Don't ever use that last one, though – most of the Conclave would kill to know who I am." Then he was out the door.

_Keeper of the Past? Forecasters?_ Natalia found a bench under the larger tree and sank down onto it. _Okay, so he claims to be able to see the future. Obviously he can't do it perfectly, or there would be no stopping Al Hanthis. But that's what my eye does, isn't it? It sees the future, the course of it at least, and I know it's accurate. But... if he really can see the future, he's the most likely to be able to teach me to turn off my eye... and maybe more? Could... could I do more than just turn it off? If I could see the future, predict outcomes, influence them... could I go back? Undo some of what I've done, what's been done to me, without risking Sasha?_

It was a tiny sliver of hope, against all her fear and guilt, but it was there, and Natalia seized on it. Anything, even flights of fancy, was better than remembering the look on Niranjana's face.

00000

As the complicated flows of power steadied and faded, Hayate slumped back a little, relaxing from almost two hours of tense work. Her shoulders ached – from stress, rather than effort – and her feet were sore from standing for so long without walking. But she was satisfied, very satisfied. "It worked," she said, accepting a glass of water from Aria. "Thank you, Takashi."

He waved that aside, though he did accept his own glass. "This was the easy one."

"But I know I can do it, now, know the little things she did not put in her notes for being 'obvious'."

Takashi grinned slightly at that, "but they were obvious."

"To her," Hayate matched his grin. Nothing surprising had been serious, just a few nuances to what they were doing that Hayate had not interpreted correctly. Looking down at Noriko's sleeping profile, Hayate's smile widened and softened. "She's going to be very happy when she wakes up, I think. It went perfectly, and she should be protected from damage to Senbonzakura, now."

Somewhat hesitantly, Aria asked, "Will it work for Cid-chan?"

Hayate's smile faded to a thoughtful frown, "I believe so. The balancing and stabilization of the cores is one of the first things to occur, and it is much stronger, initially, than I expected. We will have to do this while Shamal continues to work, but her efforts should not interfere. Not enough to prevent us from adjusting for the interference, at least."

"If you are ready, then," Takashi said, "we should not delay. The longer we wait..."

"The greater chance Shamal will fail," Hayate agreed. She finished the water, then looked about, "I don't suppose we could find a chair or stool, though? Cid-chan will take somewhat longer than Noriko did."

"Lotte will bring them," Aria told her.

"Then let's be about it."

00000

It flowed over the world, soundless, invisible, detectable only by those trained to sense and use magic. Those who were not looking for it sensed its passing as a sickening sensation, a twinge of wrong. Those who were actively sensing magic felt the blood and pain it promised, and most shrank from it, glad it was aimed elsewhere. A few looked closer, but none who did so thought to act until it was far too late. The spell was targeted elsewhere, after all, and quite specifically, for all its worldwide reach.

It struck the Yagami Academy first, and Vita, on watch, swore in surprise as half the campus wards flared to life in an instant. The alarms screaming at her warned of multiple incursions, all magical, all aimed at one person. She began activating the school's dormant shields, triggered a general alert of the campus, and began a trace on the attack, all in seconds. Fast as she was, by the time Fate arrived from the living room, the attack was already fading from the campus, having been turned by the second layer of wards.

Powered by ancient laws and refined by the most advanced mages in the world, being thwarted of its first target did not stop the spell. It spread its tendrils wide, questing, seeking. It had a signature, a target profile, that no spell could hide, no camouflage confuse. It began finding that target profile, concentrated in the islands of Japan, just a few individuals amongst all that country's population. Most of these were protected as well, under wards of their own, but those wards were paltry things compared to the fortress of the Yagami Academy. Relentless in its mindless purpose, the spell wormed its way through those wards, reached its targets, and those targets began to die.

Death was quick, but far from pleasant. Unable to discern precise biology over such a spread of targets and distance, the spell was designed simply to disrupt and stop all biological processes it could distinguish in the targets. Within a minute of finding a target, that target was dead, and within five minutes of striking the Yagami Academy, all its targets save two were gone. The first target, the anchor target, survived, as did one other, though that one would not survive the night.

00000

Hidan was about to go off duty, to retire for the evening. Simple habit had him performing one more check of the Kyoto palace compound, verifying that the standard security arrangements were in place. The Emperor himself was resident, had been since shortly after Al Hanthis rose, so that security was far tighter than normal. Everything was in order, however, and he was quite ready to return home. Things were stressful enough, he did not need to add lack of sleep to his problems.

A retching noise made Hidan pause, hand on the door. Turning back, he cocked an eye at the younger man sitting in front of the monitors. Yugito had a hand on his stomach, and a very confused look on his face. He had been perfectly fine seconds before, so Hidan asked, "Yugito? Something wrong?"

"I... I don't... something is wrong, but..." Yugito's confused attempt to explain cut off as his gaze drifted over a monitor. "The Emperor!" He jabbed a finger at the screen, but before he could say more, the radios at the next desk crackled to life.

"Medical emergency! Repeat, medical emergency! Central, this is Yojimbo, Tennō has collapsed."

"Medical emergency! Repeat, medical emergency! Central, this is Daisho, Prince Akishino and his wife have collapsed!"

More calls came in, overlapping and interfering, but the names alone told Hidan too much. He lunged back into the room, taking the alternate station from Yugito and began furiously altering the displays, focusing on certain rooms. While he did that, Yugito grabbed the medical alert phone and began calling for ambulances.

It took Hidan less than a minute to get the views he needed. Twelve members of the Imperial Family were in residence in the palace that night. All twelve were collapsed, only the Emperor himself was still moving, and that weakly. "Kami-sama," Hidan whispered, "what could have done this?"

"Magic," Yugito said, "_that_'s what I felt."

_Magic,_ Hidan thought, _the one thing I cannot sense thanks to the priests... wait, magic..._ "Noriko!" He almost knocked Yugito over to reach the phone to outside, pounding in a number by memory hard enough to crack the first digit.

The phone rang for an interminably long time, five times, six times, but finally, "Yagami Academy, Sandoval Tai-yu."

"This is Hidan, Imperial Security. What is the princess' status?"

Tai-yu was silent for a moment, "Why would... never mind, she's asleep, recovering from the transition."

Hidan felt his heart clench, "Recovering? From what?"

"Hayate transitioned her this afternoon, an hour ago or so, to a Deva mage, the same type as Hayate herself. Noriko is sleeping that off right now."

Feeling a mixture of hope and sorrow – hope that some member of the Family was still alive, and sorrow that Hayate did not have some miracle fix for whatever had just happened – Hidan asked, "Are you certain? Have you checked in the last..."

"Five minutes? I'm looking at her now, Hidan, both the video feed and the sensors. We've had her under monitors for the last ten hours to establish a baseline prior to the transition. Everything is normal, sleeping state, just as she has been since the transition completed. The princess is safe. Now, the campus was just attacked magically, but it did not get through the second tier of wards. We're back-tracing it now. How did you know about it?"

Hidan took a moment to send a silent prayer of thanks to Heaven, then explained, "Her family has collapsed." A glance at the monitors showed his security personnel and the few on-duty medical personnel attempting CPR, or worse, doing nothing. "It is not good."

Tai-yu gasped slightly, then said, "We'll wake her as soon as it is safe and get her home..."

"No! No, she is safer on the campus for now. Hayate's wards protected her from this, they will protect her from further attacks. I and some of my people will be out in the morning, once we have a handle on the situation. Keep her safe."

"We will," Tai-yu said.

Hidan hung up the phone and turned back to the monitors. "Time to emergency services?"

"Too long," Yugito replied, "three more minutes for the first ambulance, but..." he put a hand on Hidan's shoulder, "I am sorry, Hidan-san. Both princes have... already passed."

The door opening cut off Hidan's reply, a member of the Palace staff waiting outside. "Hidan-san," the man said, bowing slightly, "the Emperor has requested your presence."

Hidan stiffened, drawing in a breath, and his left hand came up to touch the tanto, politely hidden in a special pocket inside his jacket. "I am ready."

When Hidan reached him, the Emperor was in the sitting room of his private chambers, slumped over in a chair, visibly wasted. The hand he raised to wave Hidan closer was shaking and weak. Hidan almost fell to his knees, instead of his usual grace, bowing his head. "I am sorry, Heika. I cannot apologize..."

A weak hand on his head cut him off. "Hidan." Even the Emperor's voice was weak, rasping and feathery. Hidan looked up, to find his Emperor's gaze, at least, was just as iron-willed as ever. "Noriko... lives? Feel it."

Hidan nodded, "Her school's wards protected her... we don't..."

"Others... dead," the Emperor said. "I... will soon... join... them. These..." the Emperor's other hand moved, and Hidan's eyes widened – the Yasakani no Magatama and the Yata no Kagami were both in the Emperor's lap. "These... to Noriko. No one... else. Just... Noriko. Kami... kaze... must flow."

Hidan had no idea what that meant, beyond the myths, but this was his Emperor, the man he had sworn his life to serve. He bowed his head again, "I will see to it, Heika."

The hand rested on his head again. "Serve... her. I will... hold... the night. No... longer. Go."

Leaving that room took every ounce of his self control, but Hidan did it. Part of him would always remember seeing, as he backed out of the room, the weak and failing old man sitting in that chair, dying slowly. Most of him would remember those eyes, the gaze of his Emperor, proud and strong even to the last.

Once the door was closed, he picked two security men on duty, summoning them from their posts – men he had known for years, men he had once served alongside, and had helped select for their current positions. "You two will remain with him until the end. If I am not back before then, bring the Regalia to the Yagami Academy by any means necessary. The Emperor has ordered it." The two saluted sharply, then took up station to either side of the door, waiting. Hidan nodded approval, then turned down the hall. He was not even to the corner before he had a cell phone in hand, "I need a helicopter, immediately."

00000

Laura knew she was not supposed to be there. They had all been very specifically told – especially after Hidan arrived and Vita explained what had happened – to leave Noriko alone until she had a chance to wake up and Hayate could talk to her. But Laura knew Noriko would need someone close, a friend who would at least sort of understand, and Cid-chan was unavailable.

Hayate, the best option, was out cold after transitioning two people in under a day. Everyone had felt it when she finished Cid-chan, the rippling pulse of green energy had washed over the campus and several miles in every direction, healing in an instant all the bruises, scrapes, and physical injuries from Hong Kong. But that burst had also told them something was wrong, which Zafira had confirmed without words when he carried an incoherently sobbing Shamal up to Hayate's house, past almost everyone on the campus.

So Laura knew she was not supposed to be there, that she would probably get in trouble just as surely as any of her pranks, but she could not _not_ be there when Noriko woke. When Hidan insisted on checking on her physically, Laura had used the Cloak of Shades to slip inside the converted workroom. She would have used Escher Step to avoid running into anyone, but the monitors would have detected that much magic, and she had a frantic minute while everyone was leaving, trying to figure out where she could hide that the monitors would not notice.

In the end, sitting on the bed next to Noriko's head was probably not the best place, but it was the best she could come up with, as Noriko's weight would disguise her own. The hair Noriko was so vain about did a good job of concealing the depression Laura made, but that hiding spot meant Laura had to remain motionless for a far longer time than she was used to or preferred. Laura took it as a challenge, remaining perfectly still, and had to resort to meditating, half-on the bed, sitting in full lotus. The stress on her knees was a bit much, but the traditional meditative posture helped her slip into a light trance.

She had no idea how long she was sitting there, but knew it was still somewhat before dawn when Noriko shifted, stirred, and opened her eyes. Noriko looked around, frowning in confusion for a couple of minutes. Then one hand snaked out of the covers, seeking the cause of the depression in the mattress.

Worried as she was, Laura could not help joking, as Noriko's hand found her knee, "That hand wanders much higher, miss, and my daddy's got a shotgun."

Noriko stiffened, then twisted around to look up, "Laura?!"

"Shh, I'm hiding. Not supposed to be here."

"Not supposed... of course you shouldn't be here!"

"Hey, I was worried about you. And... well... yeah." Laura almost managed to say it, but the apology Nanoha had convinced her she owed Noriko stuck in her throat. It was such a petty thing to worry about at the moment.

Noriko did not let that go, however. "'Yeah' what?" When Laura remained silent, she gave an exasperated sigh and sat up, "Laura, seriously, there was nothing to worry about. The transition was easy as breathing..."

"Cid-chan is gone," Laura said. Noriko gaped at her in silence for a moment, and Laura faded into view, looking down at her hands now. "We don't know specifics, Aria-sensei said there was still something going on, but she had no idea what. But... Cid-chan's gone."

"Not entirely," Hayate said, fading into the room. "The damage to her linker core reacted to the transition's completion, releasing a great deal of power in a single sudden burst from both linker cores." Hayate pulled a chair into position beside the bed, settling into it as she continued, "There is still a vague physical presence in the hospital bed, her original linker core is stable and healing in Hipocrates, and Rafiq insists he is being supported entirely by Cid-chan, but all we can detect of her is a distortion in the room. We'll know more once Shamal wakes and can assist us in looking for her."

Noriko slumped sideways a little, "Now I feel even worse again. Is there anything I can do?"

Hayate paused, and glanced at Laura, before dodging the subject. "You're not supposed to be here, Laura."

"She needed someone," Laura shrugged. "In case."

Noriko frowned at that, looking back and forth between them, "In case of what?"

Hayate took a deep breath, then reached out and took Noriko's hand in both of hers. "Last night," she said, "the campus was attacked, by magic. We traced it back to Cairo, and believe it to have been an attack by Al Hanthis. It was targeted through you."

Noriko looked panicked for a moment, free hand going to her chest, "Is something... am I okay? I feel okay, but haven't tried any magic yet."

Hayate shook her head, "The attack did not penetrate the wards, never even touched the workroom's shields. But..." she paused, and squeezed Noriko's hand, "but it was not only targeted on you."

Noriko's eyes widened, "No..."

"They targeted your family, Noriko. All of them, as far as we can tell. Hidan and your family's staff is still checking on some of your more distant relatives, but..."

"Are they all right? The palaces are warded, some shrines, if they could reach one..."

Laura slid down next to Noriko, hugging her, "I'm sorry, Riko-chan."

Noriko tried to push her away, "Sensei? Hayate-sensei?" Her voice was rising, "Tell me they're okay? Mother? Father? Kubo? Yukina?"

Hayate tried to say something, but all she managed was to shake her head, tears falling silently down her face. It took her a minute to whisper, "I'm sorry, Noriko. So sorry."

"No... No I don't believe it!"

"I wish it wasn't true, Noriko," Hayate told her. "Hidan is waiting outside for you, with items your grandfather ordered given to your keeping."

"No!" Noriko flinched away from Hayate and Laura, curling up, tears starting to flow, "No, it's a lie! It can't be real."

Laura moved up behind her again, wrapping her arms around Noriko in a hug, trying to be comforting but having no idea how. Noriko continued to reject what they had told her for a minute, crying and muttering to herself, but Laura could feel power building. "Riko-chan, it'll be okay. We'll get through this. Hayate-sensei'll help, I'll help, we're all here..." Laura cut off with a grunt of surprise and pain as the build-up of power peaked and reality pinched around her.

When it cleared, the converted workroom was nowhere to be found. Instead, she was sitting on the ground holding a still-sobbing Noriko. To one side, she could see a substantial traditional Japanese building, wide porch beneath several levels of sloping peaked roof. Off to her left was a large pond and stream, complete with deer-chaser. Surrounding all of it was a veritable forest of trees, of multiple types. Among the trees Laura could tell there were other buildings. She had no idea where they were, but was not going to take the time to explore. "We'll find them, whoever they were. We're here for you, Riko-chan. I'm here for you."

00000

It took Hayate several minutes to figure out the route into Senbonzakura's pocket-dimension. She was a little surprised to find it so complete so soon, but only slightly. Even Sara had not been entirely certain how things worked in the pocket dimensions, save they reflected their mage, and Hayate had no time at present to investigate. She appeared before the closed gates of a traditional castle, and figured Noriko and Laura would be inside it. When she tried to gain access, however, she found the way blocked, even her attempts to fly over the walls. Flight did let her see most of the castle grounds, however, and she spotted the two in a small courtyard.

Deciding that leaving them be for a time was better for Noriko than breaching the castle's shield, Hayate returned to Earth. In the workroom, she sighed, resting a hand where Noriko had been. "I am so sorry, Noriko. After Li, I should have planned for something like this, but I thought your family, of all of them, would be safe."

With Noriko once again unavailable, however, there was work to be done. She had used Allison's Cloak of Shades and a little illusion to enter the workroom without anyone knowing, needing the comfort of her success with Noriko after the disaster with Cid-chan. Now she had work to do, so she opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Hidan was standing there, across the hall, as he had been since shortly after sunrise, when two of his fellows arrived bearing the Regalia.

"She is awake, but unavailable," Hayate told him. When he frowned, she held up a hand, "She needs time to recover herself, Hidan. She's a little girl who was just told her family has died. If you push now, you may very well break her. A little time, Hidan. She will return, and I know where she is. She is just as safe there as here."

Hidan hesitated a moment longer, then nodded. "I will wait as long as possible, Yagami-san."

"If anyone pressures you, let me know," Hayate said. "I will deal with them. She is one of my children, even more so now. Princess or not, I will not allow anyone to harm her."

Hidan actually gave her a slight grin, "Then we are in agreement, Hayate-san."

Hayate relaxed a little at that. Hidan had repeatedly demonstrated his loyalty to Noriko's family, but she had not been certain how that loyalty would push him. "Can you tell me how bad it is?"

Hidan closed his eyes a moment, then said, "She is all that remains. The spell targeted anyone who could trace their ancestry to her family back at least four generations, possibly five. It is taking time to find the more distant relations. Even if we do find a living relative, there is no one close to the Imperial line left, save for Noriko. I have no idea how that will turn out, how the Diet will react, but she is all that remains."

"There is little time," Hayate said, "but enough for Noriko to recover. I understand you insisted she remain here. Do you still believe that?"

"Yes, and I can make it stick," Hidan told her. "The Family's staff will listen to me in this, even the traditionalists. She is safe here, with the wards around her. No place else in Japan has such defenses against magic."

"We should be able to set up something similar at one or two other locations," Hayate said, then grimaced, "but only one or two. Wards such as these require a great deal of time, months, and would require myself and at least one of my knights. It was a combination of the Velka and Deva wards that stopped the attack here, and we have not yet puzzled out which."

"That would be a matter for the priests," Hidan told her. "There are... considerations, in the design of the palaces and shrines. I will convey your offer to them, but the decision will be theirs."

Hayate nodded, then gestured towards the stairs, "It's a little early, but since I'm up, I was going to get breakfast in the cafeteria, to be there when the children wake. Would you care to join me? We can reassure the children about Noriko, at least."

"I will wait for her to return."

Hayate shook her head, "She will not return here. Not to this room, I should say. She'll return..." Hayate shrugged, "... wherever she thinks to, which will probably be someplace on campus."

Hidan stared at the workroom door for a few moments, then nodded slowly, "Then I will accept your invitation, Hayate-san."

00000

It had taken Yussef all of an hour after returning from Hong Kong to decide that he had not planned enough for the battle, not thought about it enough. He needed to plan his battles more carefully, to involve the Myrmidons in that planning as completely as possible. They had all come up with good ideas before and during Hong Kong, but it had not been coordinated, and had not occurred to any of them soon enough. Yussef had no idea if such efforts would have made a difference, but it was still a problem, and better than sitting around worrying over their losses.

So he talked to Zafira, and appropriated Workroom Five, the first of the mid-size workrooms, about the size of the classrooms above. There, with more of Zafira's assistance, input from the satellite monitors, and Zulfiqar's mapping program, he started big. Now, four days after Hong Kong, with Cid-chan missing, Noriko's family dead and the princess missing until she returned, he had his Myrmidons standing around a holographic representation of the floating city of Al Hanthis, arguing over how to take the city.

"It all comes down to the shield," Luke said, gesturing at the faint blue haze that denoted the city's shield perimeter. "Until we find a way to crack it without vaporizing Egypt, we can't touch Al Hanthis."

"We can go after North Africa," Mariachi countered, "as long as we stay over the horizon from Al Hanthis itself. Hughes is doing that now, right?"

"The United States is quietly taking steps to begin supplying guerilla forces in North Africa," Zafira said, "though we have no details on that. But it is never a good idea, Mariachi, to allow an enemy to remain in their stronghold unmolested. Especially when their entire power is built on that stronghold."

"If we take Al Hanthis, we end the war, as simple as that," Luke said. "But we can't do that until we find a way to bring this shield down."

"Do we need to bring it down," Marcel said slowly, "or just crack it?"

Staring at the model pensively, more absorbed in his own ruminations on Hong Kong than on Al Hanthis, that still caught Yussef's attention. Glancing at Marcel, then looking over the city, it only took him a second to realize Marcel was on to something. Aloud, he said, "What's the difference?"

Marcel shrugged, "That's what I'm wondering. Is there a difference between cracking or breaching the shield, and bringing it down?"

The other boys were frowning now, glancing back and forth between each other and the model. "Well, breaching a shield this size is usually easier than bringing it down completely," Noah said after a minute, "but it's also easier to close a breach than to rebuild a shield. A breach would get us access, but we'd be cut off again pretty soon. Whoever we sent in would have no way out, unless... we could Trojan Horse it, send someone in to seize one of those portal generators Hayate-sensei went in through when they showed up. Or if we could figure out how those work, we could generate breaches at will."

"May as well wish they'd just surrender now," Toushiro said, "we'll have to force any breaches. And we'll have to do it quick." He called up a floating control panel, then used that to explode out a section of the model. "This thing's the same as that weapon the Revenants used to start this mess, and there's fifty of them spread out all over the city. Anyone trying to breach that shield is going to have those shooting at him, the Guard crawling all over him, and a couple million mages waiting on the other side of that shield."

"Most of the population won't be a problem, they're civilians who'll probably be in shelters." Yussef shook his head, "No, it'll be the Guard and the 'Protectors' Hayate-sensei mentioned, which will be bad enough. But a breach... we can find a way to do that far more readily than we can bring the entire shield down. If we can breach the shield, we can get a force inside. Once inside, we can seize the shield generators, enough to bring part of it down. Once we've got that, and they're vulnerable, they'll have to negotiate. That's what Hayate-sensei wanted out of Hong Kong, right? To force them to negotiate, to buy time to calm the situation down."

"That is what Hayate-sama originally wanted, but now..." Zafira shrugged. "Hayate-sama may very well decide now that the only way to bring the situation to a peaceful conclusion is to force Al Hanthis to surrender completely. Which bringing down the shield would also accomplish. How do you propose to breach the shield in the first place?"

Yussef thought it over for a few minutes, then asked, "What about Allison's idea? If she can get in, she can show us how to get in. The Myrmidons could seize or destroy a shield generator before being found easily, provided we can get in."

"Signum is testing Allison as we speak," Zafira said, "but while I recommend you investigate that route, do not rely on it. Allison's experience as a hunter has influenced her magic, and I doubt any of us will be able to match her ability to disappear in any useable time frame."

"But we may not need to disappear completely," Ichigo said. "Just enough to get in."

"We could use Laura's wormhole thing, like she did with Hicho last year," Luke suggested.

"No, not without figuring out how it actually works," Noah replied. "I'm not interested in getting myself irradiated, thanks."

"Maybe we could use it for bombs, then. If she can target it precisely, and we can be sure the shield generators won't cause a dimensional dislocation if they blow up, we could slip explosives through the shield that way."

"If her wormhole will go through the shield," Yussef said. "Luke, ask her about it – how accurate the wormhole is, if it could be used for people, all of that. Ichigo, dig up everything you can find on the shield generators. Get help from Zafira-sensei and Vita-sensei if you need access, maybe some of the volunteers. See what explosives they would be vulnerable to, and what the likelihood is of an explosion triggering a dimensional dislocation."

He brought up his own control panel, and removed the shield from the model, expanding the city slightly. "For now, however, I like where this is going. Let's assume we breach the shield and get our entire force through – us, the teachers, the girls, the volunteers, every device mage we've got. We'll start... here," he picked a spot essentially at random, in the air over the city edge. "This is where we breached the shields, gentlemen, a one-time breach that is already sealed. Where do we go from here and how do we get there? Zafira-sensei, if you would be so kind as to run the Op-For?"

It was different from the usual exercises they ran. He was used to working with a couple of them at a time against the others, or against all of them at once through the simulation. This, working cooperatively with all of them, was what he preferred, but it took some getting used to. It was also far less physical than he was used to, less about training reflexes and habits of thought than learning to think through the battles. That, again, took some getting used.

Regardless, Yussef enjoyed it, and looked forward to showing the fruits of this labor to the Guard when the time came.

00000

Spell/Ritual – Blood Penance: This is officially a spell, and technically a single person can cast it, though it would take as much prep time as the full ritual depicted above. However the spell was developed long before the refinement of the Al Hanthis/Al Hazred rune system (the basis for Midchildan and Velkan runes), and at that time did require a full on ritual. It was created by the Warlords, precursors to the Conclave of Masters, as an assassination tool and as a punishment worse than simple execution. By reading the prime-target's blood (DNA, in modern parlance), the ritual spreads over a planetary surface, looking for close matches amongst the human population. Where it finds matches (basically anyone who can trace blood relation back to the target's ancestors five generations) it induces biological failure in whatever systems it can distinguish, usually manifesting as congestive heart failure or massive stroke. The spell's major drawback is that any target worthy of the investment of time and energy will routinely be very well shielded, as will their close family members. The spell will penetrate light wards, but any serious magical defenses will stop it from reaching the protected target. While it will continue to other targets, in the Warlords' era those targets would be just as well shielded as the primary.

00000

Author's Note: the Yasakani no Magatama (a jewel representing benevolence) and the Yata no Kagami (a mirror representing wisdom) are two of the three items that constitute the Imperial Regalia of Japan, along with the sword Kusunagi. Normally kept sequestered in shrines, they are part of the (private) coronation ceremony for new emperors, and symbols of the Imperial Throne. I do have a reason they were not in the shrines where they are usually stored, which will be explained in-story.

00000

Eleventh Messenger: Got your PM too close to posting to respond, so here you go. Don't worry about 'spoiling the plot', Natalia's eye will have only a peripheral effect on her eventual fight with Laura, because it only has two uses in combat – telling Natalia if she is about to kill her opponent, and potentially freaking out said opponent. I'm not sure how Natalia would react to realizing she was about to cause Laura's death, but there's no way Laura would get freaked out hearing about her own death. She knows about Natalia's eye and has her own take on it (which I'm saving for a later verbal sparring match). As for how Laura could win a fight with Natalia, all she really has to do is show up. Natalia is not a combatant, remember? Sure, she has all the Al Hanthis runes and her own tricks, and whatever she learns between now and the battle, but she lacks the fighter's mentality and the intensive training. If she doesn't have some sort of help when Laura goes after her, she's going to get stomped rather viciously. You are right that the Schroedinger spell would give Natalia's eye fits, but only while it was active, when the spell itself would give anyone fits. There's a huge problem with that spell that hasn't come up in story yet, I'm still debating that scene.

Kell Shock: 'Fallen Angels' is actually supposed to be a somewhat specific code-phrase for students who have been misled and corrupted – dangerous, to be met with all due force, but still able to be saved. Maunders and those who go with her will be outright heretics, in the eyes of most Circles mages, assuming that anyone ever _tells _most Circle mages. You are correct, though, that they will make very good device mages, once they get over their prior inhibitions and training. Yosho is not entirely an 'ends justify the means' type, but he is distinctly unconcerned with anything that happens to those his people are at war with. Not a nice outlook, but practical. With Thorngrave being Takashi in disguise, while I was putting Endless Watlz together before I posted it, one big question was where Takashi would be for most of it. I didn't want him around the school or looming over the Circles, as neither would be his style at this point – the first roll would be too passive, the second too public. At the same time he would not leave the Circles unwatched, and he would not leave Terra while Kriegsen was there. Infiltrating the Circles' most promising unit was the best idea I had, and a nice little twist to Kriegsen's hiding spot. Allison will make an excellent infiltrator (if she's 'excellent' enough is yet to be seen), and it fits with her training as a hunter. Your original thought of her as an ambush fighter is also true, though, again thanks to her hunter training.

Baughn: Actually, the one time I've mentioned Subaru, she was manning the sensors on the Asura, and that was mainly just me reaching for names and coming up blank. Regardless of whether that Subaru was the same as the StrikerS Subaru, the way I look at it, anyone who can construct a multi-dimensional mage-enhancing device can probably handle some basic cybernetics. Al Hanthis, now, they could probably completely replace the damaged components with custom-grown cloned tissue, good as new. I don't think the Bureau would put her in a cell next to Scaglietti – she's a kid, there were extenuating circumstances, and they'd have a devil of a time proving more than one unauthorized access – but they'd lock her up for a while and keep an eye on her for the rest of her life, much as I imagine they do with Hayate. You are correct that, if she can get inside at all, Allison could probably sneak a suitcase-nuke inside Al Hanthis. To be portable without magic it would have to be a tiny one, just what is considered 'first stage' in a modern device (the initiator explosives and the plutonium core). More importantly, would Hayate ever allow one of her kids to use a nuke? Against a city with a civilian population in the millions? Remember, Hayate's Japanese, not Bureau, and she views nuclear weapons with especial distaste, and she's a police officer and teacher at heart, not a cold and distant general. Yosho would do it in a heart-beat, Szash and Hughes would seriously consider it, but Hayate? She would surrender first.

GeshronTyler: When has any series done away with an annoying villain prior to the climax? Kriegsen still has a role to play, so I'm afraid he's going to stick around. I won't be spending much time on him, personally, though, too much else to do. The event at Ayers Rock was a one-off incident, both a deliberate provocation by the Circles, trying to draw Hayate out and get information on her capabilities in the build-up to Operation Nimrod, and to show that there are more mage-traditions on Earth than anyone was aware of, as cover for the Circles' remaining hidden. As for what's under it, I have no specific plans to use it, but I will say this – the Circle presence in Australia is almost all Containment, and they're a strange and paranoid bunch by Containment's standards, who are considered strange and paranoid by the _rest _of the Circles.

CrimsonDX: And here's a third chapter (relatively) soon. Feel free to muse away, the 'fishing for plot points' comment was a joke. The bit with the program-Allina in Al Hanthis is complicated, but should be interesting.

Advent000: Nope, Kriegsen was Schuster – back when I revealed that just after Al Hanthis returned, he talked to Thorngrave. You may or may not be wrong about the program-Allina (yes, I'm being obtuse on purpose:), it'll show up later.


	33. 32 Empire

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-32 – Empire-

Staring at the gate of the fortress, Noriko wavered, then shook her head. "I'm... not ready to go back yet, Laura."

Laura glanced at her, then slid an arm around her shoulder again. "Okay. But we can't stay here. They're probably worried about us."

Noriko shrank a little, then shook her head, "Not back to school. I... I can't believe I yelled at her like that."

Laura rolled her eyes where Noriko could not see, but her tone was as understanding as she knew how to be. "Anyone would yell at that news, Riko-chan. I'd've done worse."

"It can't be real. I can't believe it."

Laura almost said something quick, then thought it over for a second and rephrased it. "Then let's go find out. If something had happened to them, where would they be now?"

"A temple, an Imperial temple, being... prepared."

Laura nodded, "So, we hit up the palace staff, find out where, and pay our respects. Sound good?"

"Kyoto, then," Noriko murmured, "I can reach Kyoto from the school." Then she stiffened, giving Laura a concerned look, "But what about you? You said..."

"I said you surprised me," Laura interrupted, "and I don't think you really meant to bring me here, but being me I didn't let go. See, I'm like a limpet mine," She grinned, grabbed Noriko with her other arm, and started mock-wrestling her, "I'll never let go! Once I'm locked on we're stuck until I go boom!"

"Laura!" Noriko tried to sound offended, but was mostly giggling when Laura stopped spinning them around.

"See? If you mean to bring me along, it won't hurt at all."

"Okay, okay," Noriko said, shifting free of Laura's grip. "Give me a minute to make sure I know what I'm doing."

Luara nodded and stepped back a bit. They had been in this place, by her watch, for seven hours or so, and she was getting hungry. Richly appointed though the place was, there was no food – nothing Laura recognized as such, at least – and Laura was more than a little starving. But Noriko had spent almost that entire time crying, sleeping fitfully, or talking about nothing at all. Hunger could wait until Laura was sure Noriko was not going to fall apart again.

"I think I found it," Noriko said, extending a hand, "hold on tight."

Laura took her hand, and was very glad Noriko kept her eyes closed. The painful pinch she had felt in Noriko's first teleport was just as bad, and she could not help grimacing. Her face was smooth when Noriko opened her eyes, though, finding them once again in the converted workroom. Laura put a finger to her lips before Noriko could say anything, and called up Paradox. Wrapping both of them in the Cloak of Shades, she kept a grip on Noriko's hand as she opened the door.

There was no sign of Hidan or anyone else in the hallway, so Laura led them to the stairs, then all the way to the roof. Before stepping out, she whispered, "The teleport barrier's thinnest going up. We fly straight up, but carefully – don't want to lose the Cloak – then you teleport us once we're clear. 'Kay?"

Invisible even to Laura, Noriko squeezed her hand, and Laura pushed the door open carefully. The class building's roof was not one of the campus' popular hang-out spots, but she would not put it past Hidan or one of the volunteers to have co-opted it as such. It was high enough to see over most of the trees, flat, and open to the sky so it was well lit. Caution proved worthwhile, as there was one of the volunteers standing at the corner closest to the dorms, looking down at the campus. They took to the air without a word, Laura watching the volunteer carefully for any sign he noticed them. But he continued to watch the ground.

00000

Vita watched the two signatures float up from the classroom building, and did not know whether to be relieved or annoyed. The wayward pair had returned, which was good, but they were just as plainly trying to sneak off campus again.

_'Hayate-sama? Noriko and Laura are back, but they're trying to leave again.'_

Hayate's response was quick, _'Are the trackers still in place?'_

Vita needed a moment to verify that, _'Yeah, still there. I've got a teleport lock on them again, as well, but we'd have to bring the teleport barrier back down to use it.'_

Hayate was silent for a few seconds, before ordering, _'Track them, let me know where they go, but for the moment don't do anything. I think I know where they're going, and I will meet them there.'_

_'Okay, I'll let you know... they just teleported, like you do. How'd she do that this soon? You didn't give her anything from Sara's library, did you?'_

Hayate chuckled, _'No, I did not give her anything, but there's a certain instinctive element to Deva magic, and Noriko has been studying it since last year. Besides, the teleport in and out of the pocket dimensions are the same, basically, as teleporting around a planet. Besides, Laura is with her and you know how __she__ is. Just let us know where they end up.'_

00000

Laura managed not to lose her lunch when Noriko teleported them to the Kyoto palace, but she did not manage to keep Noriko from noticing this time. Shaking her head, she silently pushed Noriko towards the people – mostly security, from the pistols – already responding. Noriko hesitated only a moment, then sighed and nodded.

Noriko held up a hand when the first security woman reached them, "Please, I have only a little time. Where is my family?"

The woman hesitated just a moment, glancing back towards the building. Then she turned back, bowed, and answered softly, "Kiomizudera, Heika. They will be transported to the Imperial Palace in Tokyo to lie in state tomorrow. Heika... we were told you would be remaining on the campus until Parliament needed you."

Noriko shook her head, "I will be, but... I need to see them. I will return to the campus within the hour."

Noriko did not ask this time, but Laura was half expecting the teleport. It still was not pleasant, but the repeated teleports did not appear to be making her feel worse, each was a discrete event. When the shimmer cleared and they were in front of Kiomizudera, Noriko said, "I'm sorry, Laura-chan. I know I'm not doing it quite right, but..."

"There's no time," Laura said. "Don't worry about it, Riko-chan, I'll be fine. For now, they don't look happy."

A pair of shrine-maidens were stepping under the ropes across Kiomizudera's gate, and they were, in deed, frowning softly. "Hime-sama," the closest said, "you honor us with your presence."

Noriko returned the woman's bow, "Thank you, shrine-maiden. I am here to see my family."

The woman hesitated, almost turning to the younger woman behind her, then bowed deeply. "I am very sorry, Hime-sama, however the shrine is closed. The Emperor..."

"Please," Noriko said, "I need to see them, need to... know."

"I am sorry, Hime-sama, but it is not permitted."

Laura put a hand on Noriko's shoulder, seeing tears about to start. "Lady," Laura said, "We're going in, we're going to see her family. You can either keep things clean and friendly, or you and your fellows can watch from out here."

The shrine-maiden did not bother bowing, glaring at Laura, "You have no standing here, gaijin. This is holy ground, Japanese only, and only those cleansed and prepared for the rights..."

"My paladin goes with me," Noriko interrupted, all trace of hesitance gone. Laura twitched in surprise and looked at her, finding Noriko's face set just short of glaring. "I am going in to see my family. With your cooperation, or without it. Move."

The shrine maiden stared at her in surprise for a moment, then shivered and bowed, stepping aside. Noriko swept past her, magically untying the rope with a gesture, and proceeded into the shrine. Laura took up position behind Noriko, wondering where and how Noriko had heard about her plans. Just short of the main building, a man in priest robes stepped out, placing himself in the center of the stairs. He waited there for them, then bowed deeply when they arrived.

"Hime-sama," he said, "if you could please indulge me, it would be most beneficial if you could wait outside for a few minutes."

Noriko paused, obviously considering him, then asked, "Why?"

"The preparations and rights are private, out of respect for the dead, Hime-sama. Please, a few minutes to preserve their dignity."

Noriko nodded, "A few minutes, then."

The man finally rose from his bow, and gestured to the side, "It would be my honor to show you about the grounds, Hime-sama."

While they walked, at a painfully slow pace by Laura's standards, she telepathically asked Noriko, _'So I'm your Paladin, huh?'_

Noriko flushed a little and gave her a brief, guilty smile. _'Sorry. I just remembered what Szash called you, and it fits you so well. You try to do the right thing, but you never will admit when you're wrong. Then she had to go and make me mad.'_

_ 'I don't admit I'm wrong because I'm never wrong, you people just don't appreciate my genius,'_ Laura replied, sticking out her tongue just a little through her grin. _'You got it from Szash, though? Not sure I like that.'_

_ 'Respect from an enemy is not necessarily a bad thing, though I admit, I can do without any of this enemy's opinions. But 'paladin' does fit you, Laura. Where else would I have gotten it from?'_

_ 'Snooping around in my head, or my PDA,'_ Laura replied. She fished out the item in question, woke it, and brought up one of her private documents. _'This is what I was going to talk to you about yesterday when we had our little disagreement. It's what I want to do with my class, those of us who don't fit in Yussef's Myrmidons, but aren't as enlightened as Cid-chan and Didier.'_

Noriko took the PDA, quickly scanning the document. The more she read, the more surprised she looked, and Laura was actually starting to get a little worried. It was not really the time for this sort of thing, after all, but maybe Noriko could use the distraction...

_'This is you all over, Laura-chan,'_ Noriko said after a moment, _'Twilight Paladin... I like it, it's a wonderful sentiment, but people will see it as meddling, vigilantism, won't they?'_

_ 'Probably,'_ Laura agreed, shrugging, _'but I sort of realized some people will always assume the worst about us. Look at the Revenants. Heck, look at the Rich-Witch. But the creed gives us a standard, a purpose, and the next tab has the two oaths. I figure, I'll match training levels to the oaths – when you're skilled enough to live up to the first oath, you take it to get any further training. Those will be the control.'_

Flipping to the next tab, Noriko asked as she read, _'How do you hold someone to an oath, though?'_

Laura grimaced and shrugged, _'Yeah, well, never said it was perfect. I trust myself, mostly. I would trust you to keep them, and Allison and Juliet, maybe the twins, Kaemon definitely. But yeah, internal rules still need some work. But it's where we're starting, and it'll satisfy Sensei's requirements, and gives us a goal to work towards, a standard. Something other than just "I want to be the strongest". Something other than just power.'_

Noriko was silent for a time, following the priest quietly. Laura let her think, focusing her attention on their surroundings to make sure the priests did not try a fast one. She was half worried they would try to take the bodies out while Noriko was distracted. When the silent shrine maiden from the front gate appeared, however, the priest changed their course and led them into the main building, deep into the private areas visitors were not supposed to see. When he told them Noriko's family was just beyond the next door, Noriko paused, and silently told her, _'I'll take those oaths, Laura, and I'll hold you to them, if you promise me the same.'_

Laura had no idea how to respond to that, so she tried to keep her face neutral, just nodded, and followed Noriko in. Hayate was standing against the wall to one side, with a number of priests whose expressions ranged from neutral to sour. Arrayed on tables, everything but their faces covered by heavy white sheets, were Noriko's family – her mother and father, her sisters, her uncle and cousins, her grandparents. Seeing all of them lying there, so still and pale, was a shock, despite knowing about it beforehand. It was too disturbing for Laura to look at them for long, only a few seconds to identify them, before she had to find something else to watch.

She turned her attention to Noriko, and almost fell apart anyhow. Watching her best friend crumple into herself was as painful as seeing her family was disturbing. Laura followed her as Noriko stumbled to her mother, kneeling next to her and resting a hand gently on Noriko's back. She was Noriko's Paladin, and her friend. '_I'll watch over you, Riko-chan,'_ Laura promised.

00000

Cidela had no idea where she was, or how she got there. She remembered stepping back from a wounded soldier, frowning as another soldier she had healed ten minutes before forced his way back out of the hospital to return to the lines, then a touch on her back. Now she was standing in darkness, with nothing around her but endless black. There was a tugging, an odd sensation of being pulled, gently, in a particular direction. The only problem was, that direction kept changing every time she noticed it.

"I can't reach Rafiq or Okaa-chan," she said, looking around for the least little hint, but there was still nothing. Shrugging, "I guess I see if that pull ever leads me somewhere. Where is it... that way," she decided, turning a little to her left. She started walking, though she could not see anything beneath her feet. She felt like she was standing on something, but there was nothing there.

That brought up something else strange – she could see herself perfectly well. She was wearing her barrier jacket, though she had no idea where Hippocrates was, and she could see herself quite clearly. There was no source of light that she could see, just the endless dark, but she could see herself fine.

She had no idea how long she walked, following the tugging as it changed direction again and again, and thought that it quite likely that she was going in circles. But there was nothing else, so she continued walking. Eventually, though, she did see something – a hazy object appeared, a wavering glow in the nothingness. Setting aside the tugging, she headed for that glow.

As she closed, it resolved itself into a scene, like one of the scrying windows her mother created with Klarer Wind. Through it she could see what looked like the inside of a tent roof – there was a pole from one side, with panels of heavy fabric curving up to it, and she could see part of a wall where shorter poles were joined by ropes and more heavy fabric panels. The image rippled, then a face appeared in it. It was a woman's face, structured like her own but paler than anyone Cidela knew. The woman looked concerned at first, then her face shifted to an annoyed frown.

"You again," she said, making Cidela jump a little. "Tche, you told me I'd see you again, but I really hoped you were wrong."

Cidela hesitated, then asked, "I'm sorry, but... I do not remember you?"

The woman's lips twisted in a grimace, "Of course you don't, this is the first time you've encountered me, the second time I've encountered you. Don't bother trying to understand it, you don't have the mindset to comprehend the Void. No, you just cast yourself into it without a thought and only the barest of anchors."

"I did not send myself here," Cidela tried to argue, "I don't know how I got here."

"I've seen it, girl. You ran and hid from something scary, and you picked a piss-poor place to do it. Regardless, you need to get moving. The sooner you do, the sooner you'll find your way back. You will, I've seen _that_, to." The woman grimaced, looking at her distastefully, "You're going to destroy almost every nation on Homeworld if you return, blood and fire under pitiless light. The sad part is, anything I see without your return is worse. So get to walking, kid, just remember never to tell anyone who you are or when you're from. Oh, and next time, do me a favor, and turn the glare the down."

The woman gestured, and the wavering of the portal became more pronounced. Cidela reacted, afraid of being left alone in the nothingness again, seizing control of the portal somehow and trying to go through it. There was an odd stretching sensation, the world swirled around her, and then she was standing on water, in a wide bowl, as the woman she had been talking to tumbled backwards.

Surprised and falling or not, the woman still managed to make her opinion known. "Gods above! Don't do that! The world's unstable enough as it is thanks to my idiot brother, it doesn't need you punching holes in it!"

"I… I'm sorry," Cidela said, feeling a little guilty, "but I have no idea where I am, or how to get home." She tried to step down to help the woman to her feet, but found that her feet could not leave the water.

"You're in the Void. Just follow your body back to it."

"You can't help me?"

The woman grimaced, rolling to sit up again, "I don't even like you, girl, or anything you're going to do. You're going to undo everything I've ever done, everything my so-called allies have fought for. Why would I help you? You may be the best of bad options, but you're still a terrible option."

Cidela rocked, taken aback by the woman's vehemence. "I... I'm sorry. I... how can you know that? I don't even know who you are?"

"I'm Kessenra Elasesh, third Forecaster of the Free Circles, former Keeper of the Futures for the Masters of Vision." She sneered, "I'm also skilled enough to get rid of annoying children. Go back to yourself, girl, and leave me alone."

Kessenra gestured, power trailing from her fingers, and Cidela abruptly found herself back in the blackness, with no transition. Blinking in surprise, she looked around, finding no sign of the portal, then sighed. "Now what am I supposed to do?"

Her only response was a resumption of the tugging, leading her off in another direction.

00000

Sitting in Signum's office, video-conference up but waiting, Hidan could not keep from drumming his fingers impatiently. Hayate had gone to fetch Noriko, had told him where the girl was, but it had been too long since he saw her. Noriko was all that was left of his charge, and he was failing that charge letting her go wander around unguarded.

People began filing into the room at the far end of the video conference, and the three smaller windows at the bottom lit up with faces. Hidan knew them all, though most of them did not know him. Technically he had no place in this conversation, he was merely a 'private employee' of the Imperial Family. But the Emperor had issued several orders before he passed on. Simply passing the Regalia into Hidan's keeping had been a pointed break with tradition, and now Hidan found himself in de-facto command of Noriko's security, and thus of all security for the Imperial Family.

The Prime Minister and his most critical cabinet members were present, though their usual retinues of staff and aides were absent. More unusually, there were two priests present. The screens at the bottom showed the ranking officers of the Air, Sea, and Ground Self Defense Forces. Fifteen people, in total, to decide Japan's future.

It had been impossible to keep word of the deaths secret, though the reason had so far been held very close. Too many ambulances had appeared at the Imperial Compound, and remained there too long for the not to catch wind of it. Still, it was only a day after the event, not even a full twenty-four hours, and the public was still stuck in disbelief and denial. The Prime Minister had already declared a week of mourning prior to the state funeral, and large portions of his staff and the entire city government of Tokyo were working together to hastily throw together a funeral plan. The Prime Minister would probably declare a further month of formal mourning, and the country would no doubt mourn longer.

But the people were currently still unbelieving, though Hidan doubted that would last until the funeral. Soon, he knew, they would believe, and by then the government had to have some sort of plan, some sort of response. It was not a matter of their jobs, not even for the career politicians. It was not even a matter of honor or law. It was simply true – without a plan, even if that plan required their lives for failing to protect and preserve the Emperor, Japan would collapse. That thought brought its own pain, as several members of the Imperial Family's security detachments had already taken their own lives, and he could not blame them for it. Many more members of the security staff had resigned, or fallen apart, and again, Hidan could not blame them. It was, in microcosm, what would happen to Japan without some sort of coordinated response, especially once word leaked that the deaths had been deliberate murder.

Hidan only half listened to the formalities that opened the meeting, knowing it would be some time before they got around to the business at hand. Most of his attention was given over to the phone on the desk, waiting for it to ring to tell him Hayate had retrieved Noriko. Not knowing the girl's status was driving him insane with nerves.

Sure enough, it was a good twenty minutes before the conversation finally turned to the most pressing matter. The Interior Minister was discussing politics in the Diet, shaking his head, "The fact is, despite the critical nature of the situation, there are not enough votes to amend the constitution before March, at the earliest. It will take at least that long to convince the less stringent 'no' votes to change their minds."

"We cannot wait that long," the Prime Minister said, shaking his head, "we cannot go so long without an Emperor in the current circumstances. Symbolic or not, the Emperor is the head of our nation."

"There are also other considerations," one of the priests said, just loud enough to be heard. "Japan's safety is dependant upon an Emperor in possession of the Regalia. The Kamekaze cannot be sustained without one of divine blood to call it."

"Then we must find a male blood relative, far enough removed to have survived, but still close enough to inherit," the Prime Minster said.

That made Hidan start, and he said without thinking, "Noriko is the Imperial Family. By order of the Emperor." The entire room stared at him for a few seconds, but he remained silent. He had not even meant to say that, though it needed saying. He was attending the conference only to monitor it.

The Prime Minister gave him almost a minute, then sighed, and raised his hands in a hopeless gesture, "Then we are at an impasse. Jinichiro, please continue working with the Diet. We need those votes as quickly as possible. Riku," the Law Minister looked up, "please dig deeper into the legal side of things, perhaps renewing some statute from the pre-War era, or a regency. Hidan, can you make the princess available for an appearance? It would reassure the people greatly to see her."

Hidan nodded, "I will speak with the school's headmistress, we can probably arrange something here."

The Prime Minister started to say something, but the Law Minister interrupted, "How technical can we be? What I mean is... we all know there are sometimes shocking differences between the letter of the law and its intent or execution. So, in that sense, how technical can we be? How much legalistic maneuvering and reinterpretation of words can we undertake?"

"That would depend on the outcome," the Prime Minister said, frowning in thought, "what were you thinking?"

Riku shook her head slightly, "just a thought, technicalities can often be surprisingly useful, though it would depend on the judge. But..." she shook her head, "nothing solid, but if we're willing to be a little legalistic and technical, we may be able to get some working room. I'll look into it."

The Prime Minister nodded, "If it resolves this situation, be as 'technical' as you like. For now, while we wait we are going to have to do something to reassure people. The funerals are well in hand, but what else can we do? Ideas, people."

The meeting continued on for another half hour, most of which Hidan paid little attention to. Once again he found himself waiting at the phone, actually catching himself drumming his fingers again, at one point. Eventually, the meeting broke up, the various players filing out to begin carrying out the few decisions made.

When Hidan reached to turn off the video, however, the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice both gestured for him to wait. They saw the others out politely enough, then settled down again. "Hidan," the Prime Minister said, "I need to ask you a question that is... presumptuous. But I need to know, to hold the government together."

That set Hidan on guard, half-expecting the question and resenting it already. "I'll answer it if I can, sir."

"Can she handle this?"

Hidan jerked a little, and almost snapped back an unthinking 'yes'. But he was too professional, despite his perturbed emotions, to do that. Frowning just short of glaring at the Prime Minister, he admitted, "I do not yet know. Before this, I would have said yes. She is intelligent, strong-willed, well trained. But now... I will not be able to answer your question until I see her, and she has refused all visitors since being informed of the attack. She has only talked to Hayate and to her best friend here at the school. Nothing unusual, she deserves a chance to mourn privately. But I cannot answer you yet."

"Let me know as soon as you can, please," the Prime Minister said, then turned to the Minister of Justice. "Ruki?"

She nodded, "The technicalities thing I mentioned, I've got another question for you, Hidan-san. The Imperial Family's staff is fully occupied, so I am hoping you can help me. Do you know where Noriko-hime's birth certificate is?"

00000

While Noriko was willing to give Hidan a few minutes after she returned to the campus, and accepted the Relics with due gravity, she spent the rest of the day surrounded by her friends and teachers. No one actually told him, or the volunteers, that their presence was unwelcome, it was simply clear that anyone attempting to intrude would be redirected. With so many losses piled atop one another so soon, the children were drawing very tightly together.

As it turned out, the best part of the day was a conversation he had with Laura, a somewhat longer conversation than he had with Noriko. Most of it consisted of artfully phrased questions and hints, but just before returning to the Girls' Dorm common room and her classmates, Laura told him bluntly, "Where she goes, I go. Not that I don't trust you, but I'm responsible for protecting her now. She asked me to, and I'm not going to let her down. I'm not going to tell you how to do your job, but where ever she goes, I'm going to be right there with her, so plan for it, 'kay? 'Kay."

Hidan considered that statement very carefully, following her into the common room to observe. It only took him a few minutes to confirm the gist of Laura's statement. Laura was not in proper body-guard position, not at a wall or corner, but right next to Noriko. She still behaved like the hyper-active kid she was, but there was no mistaking the watchfulness. Every time someone entered or left the room, Laura watched them. Anytime anyone approached Noriko, Laura watched them. She patently did not have the skills and training, but she had the will and desire.

Slipping back out of the common room, Hidan exited the dorm completely, walking out onto the quad, thinking. Laura's statement – half offer, half challenge – was too good to pass up, he knew that. But she needed training, beyond Signum's, and he had no idea if any of the Wolkenritter had the skills a bodyguard needed. Thinking of that reminded him of the ever-growing hole in the Imperial Family's security service. Even those who did not resign in shame, or worse, would need time to recover, something to restore their confidence. Then there was the fact that, even with the Imperial Family reduced to just Noriko, Hidan knew he would have to bring in many new faces, faces nearly as untrained as Laura.

He knew several ways to train them, from security corporations to experienced retired veterans that could be talked into returning. The problem was, Hidan trusted very few of the people who would be involved. He had been entirely honest with the Prime Minister – Noriko was the Imperial Family, and he would take no chances with her that he was not forced to. He needed the best teacher he could find, the best he could trust.

He had little time to dwell on that, however, as a colleague arrived shortly after his conversation with Laura. The man had secure communications gear, the security plan for Noriko's press-conference, and a draft of her speech, written for her by the Prime Minister's staff. Noriko and Hayate had agreed to the press conferences, on the condition that they handle all transport and that no questions be taken. Hidan had no problems at all with those conditions, though some of the Prime Minister's staff had grumbled at the second requirement.

Even with Hayate handling the transport, there were still security arrangements to be made. Despite Laura's statement, Hidan made no alterations to the security plans to include her, beyond a blanket order not to interfere with her. He had another idea for her, and rather preferred that she remain somewhat disconnected from the formal arrangements.

They left the campus as the sun was descending. Noriko's statement would be carried live, followed by a shorter statement by the Prime Minister, who would take questions. Given Hayate's willingness to assure magical security, and the difficulty of setting up a media presence at the school, the decision had been made to have the press conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Out of respect for the staff, and to avoid disrupting the ancient wards on the Palace, Hayate teleported them to a secluded street-side entrance, which was nonetheless thronged with cameras.

Those cameras were mostly disappointed in their attempts to get pictures of Noriko. Hayate, Signum, Nanoha, Fate, and Laura surrounded the princess before the teleport began, and between them managed to physically block the cameras until the gate had closed. The staff tried to whisk Noriko away to prepare her, only to find their polite insistence on Imperial Privacy laughed off by Laura and serenely ignored by Hayate, who insisted that all of them accompany her, save Fate who insisted on reviewing security with Hidan. An hour later Hidan passed off checking the arriving press personnel to the Palace's regular security staff, and slipped off to intercept Noriko's party on their way to the waiting area.

While the Prime Minister spoke with Noriko, expressing his own personal condolences, Hidan pulled Laura aside. "I'm taking you at your word," he told her, "but you need training to do this seriously. I'll arrange that with Yagami-san, but for tonight, here's what you do. Call up your armor, and you stay right behind the princess's right shoulder. Arm's length behind, no more, and just far enough to the side to leave her arm and yours clear. If anything does happen, your first and only responsibility is to get her out of the line of fire, then out of the area."

Laura frowned at him, "I thought security was supposed to stay out of sight?"

Hidan shook his head, "Generally, yes. But your presence will be a pointed statement. Also, there's the old adage of 'begin as you mean to continue'. You said you would be at her back wherever she goes. Live up to that now, and it will be harder for anyone to prevent in the future."

Laura was still frowning, but nodded. "Right, I can do that easy. Anyone I should be watching?"

"Us," Hidan said, then grinned at her confusion. "You don't have the experience to recognize a hidden threat in a crowd. We do. There will be five security personnel in evidence in the room, one in each corner, plus myself at the rear door. We will watch the media. You watch us. Study how we keep an eye on the crowd, but mostly be aware of who we monitor closely. If we notice something amiss, we will try to deal with it, but if something does happen, we will probably spot it first, and then you will have to act. Understand?"

"Watch you and your people, and if one of you spots trouble, hit it fast and hard, then get Riko-chan out of here," Laura replied, nodding, "Got it."

It was not quite accurate, and the professional in Hidan dreaded what Laura would do to someone unfortunate enough to be labeled 'trouble' tonight, but he let it go. Laura was new, after all, and at least he could be certain that anyone who did cause trouble around Noriko in the near future would never do so a second time.

All too soon, it was time for the conference to begin, and Hidan took up his station behind the press crews, trying to keep an eye on everything at once. He watched Noriko walk out on stage, noting her slight tremors, and feeling a bit of pride as she controlled them. He could tell she did not want to be there, but was carrying through. Then the moderator signaled her to start, her face changed, and Hidan saw her eyes.

They were no different from the eyes he had seen the night before, the last sight he remembered of his Emperor.

00000

Noriko could feel herself shaking as she walked out onto the stage, feeling the eyes of not just the press, but her entire nation, on her. She did not want to do this at all, certainly not now, but she recognized that her people needed to see her. They needed that reassurance more than she needed privacy or time to grieve, and the threat of Al Hanthis meant none of them had the time.

Making her more nervous was the Prime Minister's probable reaction when this was over. She had read the speech his people provided, even the last-minute final version they had given her while the staff helped her change into formal clothes and television makeup. For what it was, it was a good speech, but it basically amounted to a request for patience while the government figured out what to do. Noriko had read it, found it insufficient, and then written her own, with Hayate's and Vita's help.

Japan did not need to be patient, and did not have the time to consider. Al Hanthis was an extant and vicious threat, and the city's actions required an immediate and thorough response. As much as Japan was watching, the entire world would be watching, and the more Japan hesitated to respond, the more other nations would see surrender as the safest option. Just as China had no choice but to defend Hong Kong against a foe they knew they could not fight, Japan had to respond to this attack to prove that it could be done, to prove that Al Hanthis was not all powerful.

She knew how to say that, what she wanted to communicate, but the fact was, she was about to drop a massive political and social bombshell on her country, which was already reeling. Still, as she set her hands on the podium, and Senbonzakura faded the teleprompters out of her vision and replaced them with her own speech, she knew this was the right thing to do. It was not until she scanned over the crowd that she realized Laura had followed her out on stage. She had to work not to react, but after a few seconds found her friend's presence comforting, helping to still her shaking fingers.

Focusing on the cameras, as the Prime Minister's press liaison cued her to start, she took a deep breath, schooled her face from a blank mask to a determined stare, and began, "People of Japan, my people. Last night, with malice aforethought, the city-state of Al Hanthis committed a cowardly, vicious act of murder. Last night, agents of the city-state of Al Hanthis, by means of magic most foul, reached around the planet and..." she had to pause and forced herself to continue, "... and murdered my family, the Imperial Family."

Noriko could almost hear the Prime Minister having an aneurysm off stage to her right, but she ignored that. There was no way he would interfere with her now, not with the cameras on her and the entire country watching. "When the city-state of Al Hanthis appeared, Japan remained neutral. When Al Hanthis attacked Cairo and Hong Kong, Japan remained neutral. Japan's only involvement in Al Hanthis' predations has been to allow Yagami Hayate, a private citizen, to operate in support of China's People's Liberation Army in defense of Hong Kong, and in defense of the city of Cairo. My family's only involvement has been my own, again private, assistance to the PLA, again in defense of Hong Kong, under Yagami-sensei's leadership. That assistance was mine, not my family's. Yet Al Hanthis chose to strike at my family.

"At Hong Kong, the People's Liberation Army demonstrated to Al Hanthis that, however powerful they think they are, however justified they think their assaults and predations, Terran nations and peoples will oppose them, and will do so successfully. At Hong Kong, Yagami-sensei demonstrated that we Terrans have the power to face and defeat Al Hanthis' vaunted mage-soldiers. Because of that, I could understand such an attack on Yagami-san, on her people, even on myself and my fellow students.

"But Al Hanthis did not attack my teachers, or my fellows. They attacked me, and through me, they attacked my family. They attempted to kill me, and by targeting me, to kill my family. I could understand arguments that, by allowing me to assist Yagami-sensei in defending Hong Kong – a city whose inhabitants had done Al Hanthis no wrong, in a nation that had done Al Hanthis no wrong – my father, my uncle, and my grandfather and Emperor, they could be considered legitimate targets. That I could understand, though I could never forgive it.

"But Al Hanthis did not limit their assassinations to my father, my uncle, or my grandfather. They attacked my mother, other aunts and uncles, close cousins and cousins who have never been part of the Imperial family. They murdered my sisters, and my uncle's children, in cold blood, deliberately, knowingly. They chose to kill _children_, _innocent _children, because my family allowed me to follow the dictates of my honor and defend an unjustly attacked nation from a threat that nation had never conceived of."

She had to pause again, blinking away tears, remembering the still faces of her sisters, remembering her inability that morning to do more than look at them before she had to turn away. Even with Laura and Hayate with her, that had been too much for her. She needed a few seconds to regain control of herself and her voice, but when she continued, her voice was harder, steadier.

"Al Hanthis took this action, committed this atrocity, because it is entirely in keeping with their philosophy and the only methods they have to enforce that philosophy. They are a lone city-state, which seeks dominion over an entire planet. They have a population of thousands, hoping to rule over billions. Even with their magic, they do not have the population to begin to dominate Earth through civilized means, through economics and diplomacy. They do not even have the numbers to conquer. So they have only fear. In Cairo, in Hong Kong, and now in Japan, they have shown that they welcome, and even revel in, the fear of their enemies. They attacked Hong Kong to prove they could attack and destroy wherever they willed. Now they have murdered my family, Japan's Imperial Family, our Emperor, to prove that they can reach anyone, anywhere, anytime. They think this attack will terrorize us, and the rest of the world, into kneeling before them. They think to terrorize us into a mistake, into collapsing, into fleeing before their so-called might.

"They are right, to some extent. They _can_ murder anyone, in horrible numbers, at their merest whim. This does not make it right, or just, or even necessary, for such action is none of those things. Yet Al Hanthis turned to these methods at the slightest provocation, seeking to impose their will upon us through fear that they will use these methods again. They seek, as many before them have, to conquer Japan, to rule Japan, indirectly and directly. They will _fail _in that goal!"

Noriko could hear her heart pounding now, and struggled to keep her words steady, but not emotionless, letting just enough show to demonstrate her resolve. "Japan has stood for a thousand years and more. In that time, we have made mistakes, hateful and terrible mistakes often enough. We have our own records of atrocities that shame our memories. But we _learned_ from those mistakes, from the mistakes of our neighbors and allies. We have learned the folly of foisting our will on other nations through force of arms and fear of reprisal. We have learned the error of believing our way to be the only way. Al Hanthis has _not _learned those lessons, and seeks to commit those same errors – the same errors they made in facing the Circles before their city was banished to the Void. Japan has been down that road, seen where it leads, and we _will not _go there again.

"We are the oldest continuous nation in human history! No invader, no conqueror, has ever set foot on these islands, save that we permitted them. The Mongol hordes were swept away, the Chinese never dared attempt a landing. Even the Americans, with their Marines and their planes and their atomic bombs, set foot on our islands only after _we_ allowed them here. They remain here only because _we_ deign to allow them to remain.

"To Al Hanthis, I say, _we will not deign to allow this_! We are the Empire of the Rising Sun! Our nation is old beyond your understanding, stable beyond your comprehension. We will neither repeat our own mistakes, nor allow you inflict your own folly on us or our neighbors. We will oppose you wherever you go, wherever we find you, and you will rue the day you chose to attack us in such a cowardly and spiteful manner. You have proven yourselves utterly without scruple, honor, or redeeming feature, and we will see you pay for your crimes!

"To my fellow Terrans, neighbors, former enemies and current allies alike, I say, Japan will stand with you against Al Hanthis. We will provide whatever we may to aid your battles, teach your people, arm your soldiers. We ask only that you extend the same aid to any nation that opposes Al Hanthis, any nation suffering under their iron heel. Japan will stand with any who stands against Al Hanthis, and when this travesty is over, when the battles finish and the killing finally stops, we will _still _stand, with _all _Terran nations, _victorious_!"

She found herself shaking again, but not from fear. It was adrenalin, now, and she realized only after she paused for breath that she had lost control, her voice had rose far more than she intended. She had not, quite, been shouting, but she was demonstrating far more emotion than she should have, more than her people were used to. So she took a few seconds again, calming herself, regaining her equilibrium.

When she spoke again, her voice was fully calm, collected. "To the people of my own beloved nation, I would say this. I know I am not the Emperor's son, or even his grandson. I can only apologize for an accident of birth. But I am all that is left of my ancient and noble bloodline. I do not ask you to follow me as you did my grandfather, as you would have followed my uncle, but I ask that you give me a chance, in this war thrust upon us, to preserve my family's legacy. Give me that chance, and I will prove your trust well placed. I will never betray Japan, I will not allow any stain upon our nation's honor. Our ancestors have made many mistakes, but we have learned from them. I ask you now to show me, to show the world, to show those cowardly monsters in Al Hanthis, what we have learned. We are the Empire of the Rising Sun. Let us bring the world a new day."

She stepped to the side of the podium, bowed slightly to the cameras, then turned and, spine straight as an arrow, head high, marched off the stage behind the curtain. She was vaguely aware of motion amongst the audience, but all her attention was focused on Hayate, standing waiting in the wings. Noriko marched straight to her, barely slowing, before falling against her in silent tears. Only Hayate's arms about her kept her from collapsing to the floor.

00000

As he listened to Noriko's speech, it required every ounce of self control and professionalism Hidan had not to burst into relieved laughter, to limit his expression a slight smile. It was far from the most polished speech he had ever heard, and he knew there were any number of ways people could and would object to it in the future. But the flaws made it all the more effective, all the more powerful.

This was not some falsified politician scoring points with the voters, some manipulative bastard pretending to be more than she was. This was a hurt and grieving young woman, who knew the source of her pain, of her country's pain, and was calling that source out. She was being completely honest, and everyone who heard that speech would understand that.

Hidan knew no decisions had been made, no plans finished, but listening to that speech, he knew none of that mattered. Noriko, last member of the Japanese Imperial Family, had just declared war on Al Hanthis, and after that speech, in such circumstances, her nation would follow her without hesitation. He had no idea how it would work out, in legal or practical terms, but that night, Noriko became Japan's Emperor. There was still trouble ahead, there was every possibility that Japan would still fail and fall, but they would not be leaderless.

As Noriko left the stage, every line of her bearing determined pride, Hidan's smile grew. Despite precedent, despite their own petty pride, every man and woman among the media crews rose to their feet and bowed to her. A few went further, fully prostrating themselves before their princess.

Hidan waited until Noriko disappeared behind the curtains to the right, before saying softly, "Rise."

00000

Author's Notes: 'Heika' translates, roughly, as 'Your Majesty' or 'His Majesty', used to address or refer to the Emperor. The woman who said it above was technically (and legally, I believe) incorrect in using it to refer to Noriko, but could be forgiven in the circumstances. I also just realized on the first complete read-through just how much Cidela's situation mirrors that of Hayate in On The Path of Vengeance, a repetition that escaped me in planning this. I'd apologize for being repetitious, but it won't turn out the same way, and it's useful for making a couple of particular points towards the end of the story.

00000

phily: Blood Penance is a catalyst for several events, most of them negative, yes. Regarding your guesses as to who gets what title, 'Reborn' would work for Cidela, thanks to the Deva magic, and would also work for Noriko for the same reason, but both girls wind up with other titles. The Dark Witch is Natalia, largely due to her betrayal. With the Black Dogs, while I've only mentioned it in passing, the team was put together as part of, and draw their collective name from, Project Cuchulain. The new teams will still be the same project, and will retain the Black Dog label (much as the various SEAL teams are all SEALS). Whether or not they pick up devices, or Natalia repeats her betrayal, or Hayate 'awakens' is all speculation, though, and the answers would ruin the plot, so I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see:). Killing Noriko's family is going to have all sorts of repercussions, both for Al Hanthis and for everyone else, initial stages of which will be worked out over the next few chapters. Things are definitely personal for the entire student body now, Yussef's anticipation in the last chapter is just the first expression of that. The reaction to Szash's offers were actually calmer, with two exceptions – Natalia snapped, and Szash's attitude grated on Laura's nerves. Everyone else was offended by collected. Noriko is already taking power – whether she legally can or not is one thing, but she's taking it all the same. Her reactions above indicate some emotional instability, which will have its place, and that speech of hers was certainly supposed to be angry. Hayate could eventually snap, with terrible consequences – beyond her own power, remember that if she lets go, there goes any active restraint on Takashi, as well. But again, that's a plot point for later. The firsties will have parts to play, I haven't forgotten about them, but they would have been badly out of place in Hong Kong, and everything since has been 'high level' and/or personal. They'll show up again, but won't be central. Thanks for the review!

Lady Sekhmet Ka: I'm not sure just how 'divine' Noriko's going to be, but she's definitely going to be out for justice, of several sorts. Yussef's planning session was mostly a way for him and his boys to distract themselves, though the planning won't hurt. He learned his lesson about excluding people during Operation Nimrod, and this is part of him going the other way. I realized when I started last chapter that, young as he is, he has more training for plannign a military assault than anyone else at the school. Hayate and her Knights are well trained for Bureau-style assaults, with full barriers and small numbers of mages going after criminals. But there's a world of difference between a police action and a military assault. That puts Yussef in a rather unique position, knowledge-wise, which will come into play later. The firsties will show up again, I promise, especially the twins. But there's a lot going on in just a couple days of in-story time here (it's still less than a week since Hong Kong), so it'll be a couple chapters.

Skyfall v2.0: Something like Blood Penance could be done to all the other families of the students, and even to any extended family Hayate may have on Earth. There will be some problems with a repeat of the spell, repercussions showing up elsewhere, but this chapter was about Noriko and Japan reacting. Hayate's response and plans will take a while to come together, but as I mentioned to Lady Sekhmet Ka, it's less than a week after Hong Kong. It will take time to put together plans and take action. I have plans for another couple scenes showing Chrono's situation, one of which should show up in the next couple of chapters, but that situation won't resolve until a specific point (cavalry's nice, but Bureau cavalry would pretty much end the story). Nanoha, Yuuno, and Fate have their parts to play, never fear. Nanoha, especially, has at least one more encounter with Szash.

Kell Shock: Actually, for me, 'to hand' is the proper form of the expression, and 'close to hand' is the sort of needlessly wordy approach stuck up lit-crit types use:). I learned it without 'close' first, then encountered the full form, and tend to use both naturally. If anything, I need to go back and swap out one use of the expression for something else, I hate repeating phrases. As for Yosho's catspaws getting away with it, it just happened. Depending on who you were talking about, they could be 'brought to justice' fairly quickly, if Yosho decides to turn them into sacrificial pawns – but more on that next chapter. Regarding what was revealed to Japan, originally just that 'something happened, it's a tragedy'. Noriko, of course, just blew that can of worms wide open. Fear can convince people to back down, but when those who are afraid have someone else to hide behind, they tend to do that instead of capitulate. Natalia is anchored to reality, but how and why is less important than the fact that she is – and she was incredibly lucky. The Blood Penance spell is limited in its effect by the targeting information it is provided with, and by the targeting protocols built into the ritual, which effectively locate anyone with a genetic connection to the bloodline of the 'prime target' going back five generations. The spell could, if the targeting protocols were removed without destabilizing the spell, and enough power put in it, kill every human being on Earth. The only thing stopping Al Hanthis from using it again is their own decision not to, but that will be covered by their reactions in the next chapter or two. Kusunagi is somewhere safe. I thought about having Noriko do something violent, but lashing out just isn't in her character. Even at Laura's worst provocation, she got mad and started to yell at Laura, but did not 'lash out'. She's also still on a roller-coaster of greif and anger at present, with some repercussions all its own. Yussef's planning was something of a distraction for him and the Myrmidons, but it _is_ serious, and as I mentioned to Lady Sekhmet Ka, he's in a unique position as far as knowledge and skills.

Alucius Dawn: Blood Penance is brutal and vicious, everything the Warlords and the Circles are, according to Al Hanthis (and everything Al Hanthis is, according to the Circles, and so on and so forth). Cidela's actually wandering the Void... sort of, but that'll play out in the background for a while. The war's already escalated far beyond what Hayate ever wanted, and now beyond what Szash or Hughes would have wanted, but their reactions are coming up. With the 'to hand' phrase, I mentioned it to Kell Shock, but that's how I learned to use it originally – 'close to hand' is too wordy:). Thanks for the review!

Canis Black: Glad you're enjoying this, and that I can still surprise. Sorry about the time between chapters, it's a factor of how I go from notes to text. Some scenes (like the last couple chapters) are fully or mostly worked out in my head and just flow onto the page, others are more difficult to get to behave than my cats. Thanks for the compliments and the review!

Rathmun: Blood Penance is a relatively quick death (unless you're partially protected, like the Emperor was). Mostly that is due to the fact that, given the range over which the spell works and the difficulty of sorting the targets from the general populace, there isn't much 'room' left in the structure of the ritual/spell for specific methods of murder. Like drug interactions today, what causes severe to fatal effects in one person might be nothing but a bad day for someone else. So Blood Penance gets its horror from the breadth of its victims, rather than the viciousness of its method. I will say that you have some very good guesses for who the Goddess of Light is, and I'm wondering if this chapter or next will change your mind. Laura's bolt drones are very effective weapons, for what they are – a single cartridge (same as the Velka devices use), the components to accept targeting from Paradox, trigger that cartridge, and focus the power into a buster spell, a basic levitation spell, and some very simple camouflage spells. Since Academy Blues, Laura has improved the drones so they will survive use and can be re-used, but they are still very inefficient – fifty to seventy percent of the power in the cartridge is simply released randomly, instead of going into the drone's buster spell. Thirty going off at once almost created a dimensional instability due to the wasted power, so any large scale use would need a way to handle that energy, though Laura has an idea I have yet to unveil for that. If Cloak of Shades suffices to get through one of Al Hanthis' portals (and that's a bigger 'if' than people think), an adaptation of it would be excellent for the drones. The big problem with your suggestion of leaving them free to float to attack at random, even if only in specific areas, is 'collateral damage' – Al Hanthis is a city, with a population of millions, only a handful of whom are Guard or Protector. For Hayate or Laura to use that, it would reduce them to the level of Yosho with his Blood Penance, so it's unlikely. Laura does have a rather berserk use for large numbers of bolt drones, but that'll have to wait for the right time:).

Templar Prime: Welcome aboard and thanks for the review! Feel free to guess about the Emperor, there have been plenty of good ideas so far, even if I won't say who's right just yet:). The political and social fall-out, especially in Japan, is going to be complicated, and you can see the start of it above. Not the least of the problems is the fact that Noriko just took any possibility of calm and reasonable discussion and tossed them out the window. As for 'from whence', I generally use 'whence' when I'm parodying pompousness, and 'from whence' does that better. It creeps into the writing sometimes, sorry.

GeshronTyler: Japan's reaction was going to be bad, and thanks to Noriko, it's probably going to be worse. At the least, she may very well need a new Prime Minister. Blood Penance could be considered a WMD, a terrorist weapon, or both. I still haven't decided if the US president in this story has a spine or not, so US response could go either way. Blood Penance does effectively eliminate any possibilty of negotiations, sneak attacks on beloved targets tend to do that – and yes, the analogy to Pearl Harbor is deliberate. Cidela is going to be out for a while, but Noriko's back in action – whether or not she should be. It's only been a few days since Hong Kong, so the counter-strike is still being set up.

The Sandman: The way Al Hanthis powers their mages is a massive vulnerability, like any army's supply lines. The problem with going after the power generators directly is two-fold. Once a force gets into the city, if they don't get the shield down, there's no way to reinforce them. The second is, the city's power generators are known Lost Logia that are known to go 'boom' very easily, so Hayate and Co. will be very leery of going after those. The shield generators may or may not be Lost Logia, but bringing down a few will create an opening, allowing reinforcement and resupply of the attacking force, which can then go after other targets with secure supply lines. The connections from generator to mage could be dealt with, but its less like severing a network connection than daming a river – it's doable, but difficult, and once you figure out how, you have to figure out how to do it to twenty, thirty, or a hundred mages simultaneously. A stronger version of the Bureau's combat containment barriers will do it (assuming there is not a generator within the barrier), which is why the Guard put an entire platoon on preventing Hayate from raising such a barrier at Hong Kong. The Allina in Al Hanthis is going to pop up a few times, though how and why should be interesting. Al Hanthis does have AI, but they approach it differently from how the Bureau does, and especially from how Allina and Niranjana look at it. It won't make much difference in combat, as the Guard's implants fulfill a lot of the same multi-tasking functions as a mage-device, but it will give Hayate's people an edge. The Circle mages Hughes sends along after Maunders will have their own spin on things, but for device mages, a wolfpack would be nasty in terms of raw power, but keeping control of that plus a device would probably overwhelm any but the best mage. Hayate could manage it – as could Takashi, Nanoha, Fate, and Yuuno – but why would they when they're just as dangerous without it, and someone else could use that power more efficiently elsewhere? Laura has not yet had time to have any reaction of her own to the Blood Penance spell, and she probably won't have a separate reaction – by the time Noriko recovers from it, Laura will have recovered from it. Blood Penance did serve its purposes, but are you certain those purposes were Al Hanthis'? It is definitely serving Yosho's purposes, though it may still backfire on him. There are two big problems with using nuclear weapons against Al Hanthis. The first is where the city is currently located – over Cairo, a city of nearly seven million people who are as much victims in this war as Japan. Al Hanthis' city shield covers Al Hanthis, not Cairo, so any attempt to use WMD to breach the shield will destroy Cairo and everyone in it. The second problem is the fact that the vast majority of Al Hanthis' population are civilians, and no one has any idea how much input they have in their government. Slaughtering them wholesale would be worse than Blood Penance. If Hayate and Hughes were willing to undertake that sort of cold-logic 'greater good' approach, she would have already used the Armageddon spell to simply eliminate the city. Basically, it sucks being the good guys, because it removes all the easy options. Thanks for the review!


	34. 33 Reactions

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-33 – Reactions-

Hughes watched the speech, listening to the running translation with half his attention, with conflicting emotions. There was pride, of course, and hope. Noriko had just delivered Japan, and while Hughes had been confident of that before, there was a difference between an ally of practicality, and an ally determined to prevail at any cost. He was impressed by fact that she had the strength of character and will to stand up there in front of the entire world, when she had to be in terrible pain, and challenge the very demons of Hell. There was also shame and cold calculation, shame because of the cold calculation and what he and Hayate and the rest of the world were going to do to that girl, in the name of victory.

The ACES leadership was watching the speech live at a ridiculously early hour. They had gathered specifically for that, prior to more concrete planning, along with their Pentagon, CIA, and State Department liaisons. The only person missing was Arlain, who had taken over Project Chuchulain from 'Schuster', but the former SAS Sergeant claimed to be 'too busy' for the trip to DC. Hughes noted his staff's reactions as Noriko's speech came to an end, and was generally happy with them. None were reacting too strongly, but they were all reacting.

Major Laersh, the Defense Department liaison, was the first to speak when Jennifer turned down the volume on the television. "Joan of Arc," she said, "Christ, that kid's a modern Joan of Arc. That whole country's going to explode."

"Worse," said Ellington, the State Department liaison, "she's going to take China right along with her. All those references to the defense of Hong Kong, especially giving so much credit to the PLA..." he shook his head slowly. "China's taking a lot of pride in the defense of Hong Kong, and the way she credited the PLA will appeal to that pride. Tying herself into that, along with the sympathy for suffering her own attack, will hand her China on a silver platter, despite the historical enmity."

"China won't go along with her that easily," Laersh protested. "Those countries have been at loggerheads since the twenties."

Ellington shrugged, "Loggerheads, yes. But both nations have been attacked without warning or provocation by a hated enemy. A _new_ hated enemy, one that has just committed atrocities that are a lot fresher than Nanking. That girl and her teacher helped China defend Hong Kong, without being asked or demanding any sort of concessions for Japan. Add to that the rumors running around that one of China's mythical Dragon Kings is at that school and supporting Hayate. Now Japan has been attacked by the same people that attacked Hong Kong. A mutual enemy, especially a hated enemy like Al Hanthis, will easily outweigh any national competition or seventy-year-old bad blood. Oh, the Chinese government won't be blatant about it, they'll make all sorts of noise about 'allowing Japan to assist' and 'international cooperation in pursuit peace' and all, but they'll go along with Japan. If we can get Japan to go along with us, all the better."

"I'll agree that was a rather inflammatory speech," Heller said from next to Rodriguez, the two highest ranking mages Hughes had in Washington, "but can she really follow through on it? The Prime Minister looks rather unhappy, and from the translation he's improvising rather quickly. I think she just surprised _him_ more than she surprised _us_. Can she get away with that? More importantly, can she promise anything on Japan's behalf?"

"I thought only a son could inherit the throne," Rodriguez added.

"Hence the Joan of Arc," Laersh said. "An inspiring figure to get the troops moving, but not a real power."

"That I'd agree with," Ellington said. "She'll make an excellent rallying point, and if she keeps giving speeches like that they'll have no problem with motivating the populace. The government would never let her inherit, though, not with the Diet's current make-up, they won't have enough votes to amend their constitution to let a girl inherit the throne. They'll probably appoint a regent until the princess has a son and that son comes of age. There's some precedent."

Hughes had focused on watching the Prime Minister while the others debated, listening with half a mind, but now he shook his head, "You're all wrong."

"Sir?"

He looked back at his people, and pointed at Laersh, "You say she's 'Joan of Arc'." He turned to Ellington. "You say they'll appoint a regent, that Noriko will remain a figurehead princess. You're both wrong.

"I don't know how the inheritance will play out, I lack the intimate knowledge of Japanese politics and national identity, but I do know that the Prime Minister will not dare do anything that smacks of disrespect for or dishonor towards Noriko now. If he does, or if he tries to weasel out of the promises she just made, the people will tear him apart, politically, and his successor will follow her. And look at his face," he gestured at the nearly-silent television, "that's not a man who's angry or offended. He's emotional and off-balance, because Noriko affected him just as much as she did the rest of her country.

"To Paraphrase, 'while I have the frail body of a woman, in this frail chest beats the heart of a king'. She's not a modern day 'Joan of Arc'," Hughes finished, "She's Elizabeth the First."

00000

"And that, children, is why Protectors handle law enforcement, and the _Guard_ handles warfare," Szash said, muting the screen and dropping her head onto the back of her chair to stare at the ceiling. "Damn Yosho and his meddling."

Luen protested, "I still don't see how Lord Yosho is to blame for this. He was just as deceived by this 'Sheirn' and 'Akar' as Master Adept Willan was."

Szash gave her a disbelieving look, but it was Eri who answered her. "Yosho knows everything about everything he is involved in. He knew precisely what was going to happen with that ritual. We have already analyzed it, and the spell required genetic identifiers for targeting. There are only two places in Al Hanthis that have such information on Hayate or her students – the Guard, and Yosho."

Luen flinched, then shook her head, "No data is secure, someone could have..."

Szash laughed once, harshly. "Yosho and I both keep the data on crystals, not in the net. I don't know what protocols he has for accessing it, but I wiped a reader clean – physically removed the network port, erased all the data already on it, and hard-formatted it – and only use that reader to access the data crystal. Yosho, being the paranoid old bastard he is, probably has stricter protocols.

"That leaves someone getting at Kriegsen, getting the information from him. Except he's been to this city a total of two times, both times under strict quarantine by the Protectors. He's Yosho's little secret weapon, to trot out when our dear Lord Protector needs an advantage over me in the Conclave, or just needs to distract the Conclave while he does something underhanded. At present, he's secreted away all the way up at the top of the Protectors' tower, plotting gods-know-what but effectively non-extant, for all the chance anyone else has of getting to him.

"As for knowing what the information was going to be used for, Yosho knew. He would never let information out of his control without knowing precisely what it was going to be used for. In this case, he would have insisted on a copy of the spell, full details, and there are _no_ scrying spells that rely on genetic information. Most rely on something personally associated with the target, or a very strong memory of the target, but scrying spells are too close to the Void, they rely on less physical connections than simple genetics. You'd scry everyone related to the target back who-knows-how-many generations, without necessarily getting anything usable on the target. Yosho knows that as well as I do, anyone who makes Master should know that. So Yosho knew that was no scrying spell he was helping with."

Szash settled back in her chair, looking at the now-still image of the fierce young girl at a podium, and shook her head. "Now we just have to prove it. This happened in Cairo, in our part of the city, on our watch. That makes it a Guard investigation. Luen, since it was your area and you set it up, you are now responsible for finding the bastards that did this." Luen started to say something, but Szash cut her off with a slashing gesture. "No. This is your mess, as much as it is the Guard's, you're going to clean it up. That is your assignment, Captain, your _only_ assignment. Your duty post is now where ever the investigation leads you. You find them, the two masters and their apprentices, and you bring them to me. Then you find whoever set them up, whoever they work for. I don't care if it was half the gods-be-damned _Conclave_! You find them, and you bring them to me. I don't care what physical condition they're in, so long as they're alive and can be made coherent. That is your mission, Captain, your sole purpose in life. Understood?" Luen looked like she could not decide between being insulted or afraid, but bit her tongue and nodded. "Then dismissed, Captain. Get to work."

Szash, Eri and Gali watched her leave, then Eri turned to her, "A little hard on her, weren't you? Even if he had come to me, I probably would have arranged something for the Lord Protector's 'project'."

"But you would have told me about it, you would have made certain there was a Guard mage present and monitoring, and they would have prevented this travesty from happening," Szash said, leaning her head back on her chair and rubbing her eyes. "We were fighting a number of discrete enemies, Eri. Capable on their own, dangerous, but easily handled and defeated in detail. Three, maybe four more strike waves, and Africa would belong to us. We could relax then, take a century or so to solidify control. Yeah, that would give the rebels time to build up their forces, but you saw the Hong Kong reports same as I did. Their so-called 'empowered' are atrocious, and without implants to regulate the incoming power from the support teams, these Circles are less like their traitorous ancestors than like Seed – good at doing one thing at a time, but otherwise useless and vulnerable. Now..."

She rolled back down, fixing her eyes on Noriko's image. "Now, that little girl is going to rally every nation on this mudball against us. That lovely divided enemy command structure is going to vanish – oh, not instantly, but it's gone. We're going to be facing a single unified enemy, with sheer numbers we can't hope to match, and the sort of motivation the gods send along once in a blue moon."

Eri knew all that, but asked, "So what do we do about it? Step up or back off?"

"We can't back off," Gali answered. "The Conclave would never allow it, and if we try now the Terrans will just swarm us under. Al Hanthis isn't space-capable, let alone FTL-capable, until we replace the generators drained by the Void and by the return. By the time we manage that, the Terrans will find a way through the shield, then through _us_, and the city will fall."

"We'll do a little of both," Szash murmured, studying Noriko's image, "a little of both. Gali, go ahead and start waking the Seed for the next strike, but make it twice the increase we discussed, in two forces. We'll hit New York and London at the same time, instead of in sequence. The Eight-thirty-second and Two-seventy-seventh to New York, the Four-oh-seventh and Five-twenty-fifth to London, with the Five-oh-first's survivors on suppression duty. I'll take the New York strike, along with Yosho's pet traitor, while you take the London strike and Eri overseas the second expansion wave. Make sure word leaks to the Terrans on both targets before we launch.

"Eri, instead of territory and population, we'll have to go for mundane resources. Focus the entire second wave on the gulf east of us, what they call the Middle East. Bypass everything between here and those oil fields and the ports. They may be useless to us, but the locals apparently depend on that stuff. Take all six companies we had planned for the southward expansion, we'll have to cover that later. Maybe have the Conclave's diplomats step up, see if they can pressure or cajole a few of the nations south of us to surrender or accept vassal status or something."

"Should you be taking the Morisovitch girl?" Gali sounded curious more than concerned. "I know Yosho asked if you would be willing to, to test the girl's loyalty again, but she's a liability no matter how you look at it."

"She's bait," Szash answered. "Wherever she goes, Hayate will focus her attention, concentrate her forces. Having her show up in New York will rattle Hayate's plan, and screw up her coordination with her students. The young ones will want payback, and even if they keep discipline, it will still be a distraction for them. And if the traitor does decide to go back to them, or was a plant like the intel weenies worry... well," she shrugged, "friendly fire isn't, but it still happens to the best of us. Oops."

00000

The morning after Noriko's speech, Allison was up early running Signum's obstacle course through the woods behind the dorm. They had discussed her idea for infiltrating Al Hanthis the day before, and while Signum had made no decision either way, she had set Allison to training for the infiltration, 'just in case'. Allison ran the course twice that day under Signum's direction, but returned on her own the next morning. One run-through took ten minutes, so she ran it twice to get her heart-rate up and see if she could improve, with the intent to go twice more.

When she was trotting back to the start for a third go, she found someone waiting for her. Fate was standing by the course start point, a cup of coffee in each hand. "Juliet said you drink this stuff too," she said, extending a cup to Allison.

Allison shrugged and took it, "Sometimes. Usually to stay awake, rather than wake up. Annoys my father, though."

"It's warm, the weather's cold," Fate replied with a small grin, "and it's only a little evil." Allison chuckled at that, remembering comments from both her parents, then hissed as an experimental sip showed the coffee still far too hot to drink. Fate grinned at her, sipped the coffee easily, then said, "Walk with me."

Allison nodded and fell into step as Fate headed along the edge of the woods, behind the dorms. "Signum discussed your idea with Nanoha, Yuuno and I last night."

"Figured she would," Allison said, "some of you, anyhow. Any suggestions on how to go about it?"

"We're still discussing it, among other things," Fate said, "but it's a good idea. Signum wants to test your Cloak of Shades herself, see if any of us or the volunteers could match your stealth, which we'll start this afternoon, through tomorrow. Several of the volunteers are up for the attempt, I'm interested, and Zafira thinks he could manage it."

That was annoying, but not unexpected. Allison was quite proud of how stealthy she could be, and had been looking forward to the attempt. But it was far more logical to have one of the teachers or volunteers – someone with years of experience extricating themselves from dangerous situations – make the attempt. So she shrugged and nodded, "I'll show them the Cloak, it's not that hard."

Fate chuckled, "It's not that hard for you. I've studied the recordings and notes, and still can't quite manage it."

"Laura managed it… well, eventually. Took her a couple weeks straight. I'll show you, don't worry about it."

"That'll be later today," Fate told her, "along with some of the others. For now, though, I wanted to talk about your plan for getting in. Signum gave me an overview, but I'd like to hear a detailed plan, if you have one."

"I've got one," Allison replied, "but it needs work." It took her nearly half an hour to talk Fate through all the permutations she and Noah had come up with, the contingencies and back-ups. They were actually past the look-out and into the woods across the street before she finished.

Fate was silent for most of the explanation, paying attention but letting Allison talk. When Allison finally wound down, Fate nodded. "You have a good basic plan, but there's the one problem I expected from Signum's description. The initial teleport."

Allison shrugged, "I know, they're easy to spot. I figure I'll go in somewhere remote, then fly in under stealth."

"That could work," Fate said, "but the more time you spend moving under the Cloak, the greater the chances of someone seeing through it. You want to spend as little time as possible under the Cloak and in the city's environs. So you need a way to teleport in quickly without being noticed."

"But the only teleport any of us know is easy to spot." Allison frowned, "Don't tell me… The Russian and Ichigo found an old relic version of the teleport, didn't they?"

Fate chuckled, but shook her head, "No, they found the Bureau standard teleport. It's part of the second year curriculum, and if it weren't for Al Hanthis you would all be learning it about now anyhow. But it's not the only way to teleport, just the safest and easiest." She paused, smile fading into a serious look. "The one I'm going to show you today is extremely dangerous, and you need to understand how and why before you attempt it."

Allison gave her a doubtful look. The original teleport had some downright frightening warnings appended to it. Teleporting was simple enough, mechanically speaking, just requiring a great deal of power and the sort of precision you could only get from a device. Even then, there were all sorts of ways to mess it up, with the least frightening being ending up somewhere wrong – variations on that error ranged from a few thousand feet up, to a few miles up, to outer orbit to inside a nearby (or not so nearby) object. Then came the possibilities of leaving bits of yourself behind, or simply never coming out of the teleport, being lost for eternity in the border of reality. "You know a way to make a more dangerous teleport than normal?"

Fate's smile returned, but it was a sickly expression, as was the chuckle. "Oh, I know one, and Hayate-chan's going to be unhappy with me for showing it to you. But it suits you too well for you not to know it, and while it is officially proscribed by the Bureau for anyone below S-rank, I'll be teaching it to everyone you teach the Cloak of Shades to. You know how the basic teleport works, right?"

Allison nodded, "Yes. You open a channel through the border of reality to connect your origin and destination, then send yourself through that channel. The dimensional teleport is more complicated, but that's a matter of locating and relating the origin and end points, right?"

"Correct, and that is the gross difference between the basic teleport and what I'm about to show you. Takashi developed this teleport before he became a Deva mage, and I learned it from monitoring the original Akira and puzzling out his method. It will bypass some teleport barriers, though it won't reach into the school or directly into Al Hanthis – standard teleport barriers will generally stop it, only low-grade barriers won't stop it. Its primary advantage is that it is incredibly difficult to detect before the portal opens, and even then the only reliable detection method I know of is visual – if you see it, it's painfully obvious, otherwise it's devilishly hard to pick up. The teleport is also significantly more accurate than normal, though I haven't figured out why yet.

"The thing is, part of what makes it so difficult to detect is that you are actually transiting through null space, what Al Hanthis calls the Void. All the energy bleed that characteristically precedes and follows a teleport is instead drained into the Void. The danger is, it is very easy for _all_ your energy to be drained into the Void, and for you to be lost there just as if you had fallen into a null space."

Allison's trepidation grew, "A teleport through the Void? No offense, but that's insane."

"Yes it is," Fate agreed, "which is what makes it so effective. Also, keep in mind who created it."

Allison chuckled at that, "Yeah, okay, he's crazy. But this sounds way more dangerous than it's worth."

Fate shook her head slightly, "Yes and no. I use it rarely because of how dangerous it is, but there are some situations where the ability to arrive unannounced is simply priceless. Such as arriving in Cairo to infiltrate Al Hanthis. In your case, it will be useful even if you don't go to Cairo. Even in battle, with the tactic Toushiro and Ichigo came up with, this teleport will serve you better than the standard method. Just whatever you do, do not show anyone else how to do it. I haven't asked Hayate if I can show you, and not all of your classmates have the combination of skill and need to make it worthwhile. Now, we're far enough away not to interfere with the teleport barrier or baseline wards, so we'll work from here.

"What I'm going to do is demonstrate the teleport once, leaving and arriving. You'll stay here and just observe it, see how it looks from both ends. Then I'll do a couple more, and bring you along so you can experience it. After that we'll go over how to actually perform the teleport, which we will review until I'm certain you're ready to try it. Only then will you try it, and it will be all short range work. Understood?"

"Loud and clear, Testarossa-sensei," Allison replied, waking Gallóglaigh. She still thought it was more dangerous than it was worth, but if it gave her a shot at the mission, she would do it. The teleport might even be worth the risk, once she figured it out.

00000

The two days after Noriko's address to Japan were some of the loudest Japan had ever experienced, in terms of public activity, government debate, and mass demonstrations. Little had been organized at all prior to the speech, in any of those areas. Certainly, no public demonstration to the scale even the smallest city experienced had ever occurred in Japan. Despite that, the demonstrations and gatherings took place with remarkable order for their scale. By most standards, the crowds that gathered – at shrines, Imperial palaces, or, failing the first two, government offices – were remarkably well behaved for impromptu demonstrations. There was little to no property damage, no mass hysteria, and even the tumult and volume was relatively low. That was generally put down to the Japanese peoples' traditional calm and reserve. Japan's notoriously efficient police proving oddly forgetful regarding required permits and prior notice, save the highway patrol around the Yagami Academy, also contributed, no doubt.

Calm and orderly though the crowds were for their size, there was no doubting what they were there for. Placards, signs and chants denouncing Al Hanthis abounded, mostly demanding vengeance. Almost as numerous were placards and signs expressing Japanese solidarity, especially the old Rising Sun flag. Of all the signs being waved, however, the most numerous was a single picture, a still image from Noriko's speech, with 'We will not deign to allow this!' positioned around it in various arrangements.

The largest and most continuous crowd formed in Tokyo, outside the National Diet Building. It reached thousands before most offices normally opened, passed ten thousand before noon, and did not stop growing until well on towards evening. It spilled out over Tokyo's streets, filling the area around the Diet with ease, becoming large enough that, simply for manpower purposes, the Prime Minister was forced to call up the Self Defense Forces – only to find that the Tokyo SDF personnel were largely already present.

The Prime Minister had called the Diet back into emergency closed-door session the night of Noriko's speech, and they remained there throughout the day and night following. The session covered only two subjects – the Throne and Al Hanthis – and despite the public outpouring, was highly contentious, as alternate answers and approaches were proposed, shouted down, modified, re-proposed, and generally refined. Those members not currently involved in the 'debates' would frequently appear on one of the impromptu stages set up outside the main entrances of the Diet to address the crowd.

The throngs gathered the second day as well, nearly as numerous, just as vocal. The Diet continued to meet, but after midmorning, did so without the Prime Minister. He had to leave the National Diet Building by helicopter, the crowds were far too thick for any sort of motorcade, but that simplified his journey, all things considered. The helicopter needed one refueling stop to reach the Yagami Academy, where he was met by the Justice Minister, a pair of priests, and Signum and a pair of Volunteers.

The Knight very politely searched them all, then guided them down the foot path to the school proper. Signum brought them into the Library, then back to Hayate's office, where Hayate and Noriko were waiting. Noriko and Hayate had arranged the conversation area, leaving both of them seated with Laura behind Noriko, Hidan by the door, and several chairs arranged comfortably in front of them. Signum waved the guests to seats, then took up her own position behind Hayate. The two ministers were patently uncomfortable with the arrangement, but at Noriko's gesture, sat anyhow. The two priests managed to be composed enough not to show any discomfort, if they felt any.

The Prime Minister began, bowing in his seat, "Heika, thank you for agreeing to see us so quickly."

Noriko nodded acknowledgement of his bow, and gave him a small smile. "Think nothing of it. I understand the need for rapid decisions, and Sanziro-san implied you had found a resolution to the inheritance issue." She was having to work very hard to keep her own nerves out of her voice and off her face. Whatever resolution, whoever they had found, would have to be perfect, or Noriko would have to fight it, and she had no idea how such a conflict would end up. It was entirely possible that, in trying to hold Japan together against Al Hanthis, she could destroy the country just as Al Hanthis had tried to.

The Prime Minister actually started sweating, which made Noriko more nervous. "We have found a resolution, and… the Diet voted on it not two hours ago. By decision of the Diet, the announcement will be made at dawn tomorrow, Tokyo time."

The Prime Minister's patent discomfort was worrying her, but it did not seem right to be some sort of coup. Something about the guests made her think they were… embarrassed? "May I know what the decision was? I give you my word, none here will reveal it prior to the official announcement."

The Prime Minister fidgeted, then reached up to loosen his collar. "Ah… Heika… the arrangement is… unorthodox. Given the unusual situation and dangerous circumstances, I am afraid it is the only answer we have been able to assemble in the time available…"

While his attempts to skirt the issue and obvious discomfort were making her more nervous by the second, Noriko held up a hand. "Please, Ozawa-san, be at ease. I understand the difficult circumstances, and so long as Japan remains strong, I will not judge you."

"I… thank you, Heika. We…" He took a deep breath, then bowed low in his chair again, and the words spilled out, "the Diet voted this morning to confirm you as Emperor and proceed with your coronation the day after your grandfather's funeral."

Noriko blinked, surprised both at his words, and that they had made him so uncomfortable. There was no reason for him to be so uncomfortable, unless… "Ozawa-san, I cannot inherit the throne. I am a daughter, not a son. Please, don't tell me the Diet voted to raise me Emperor in violation of the Constitution. Critical as this time is, I could not support that."

The Justice Minister, Riku Sanziro, drew a set of papers out of her briefcase. "With your permission, Heika," she said, bowing and extending them, "I believe these will explain. No laws were violated, certainly not the Constitution, and as you can see from the final page, the High Court issued a ruling on the matter late last night."

Noriko took the papers, and already half-expected that the High Court had authorized some sort of over-ride on the Constitution. The first piece of paper was an official copy of her birth certificate, which she flipped past automatically, to the two short legal documents below that. She got halfway through the first page, then flipped to the last, confirmed what it said, and could not keep from shouting, "What?! I most certainly am _not_ a _boy_!"

Hayate coughed in surprise, and Noriko thought she might have heard something from Hidan, but Laura distracted her. Her friend was very quick, and Noriko was still too surprised to begin to react as Laura snatched the papers right out of her hands and started flipping through them. While she did that, Sanziro bowed in her chair and said, "Our apologies for any disrespect or insult, Tenno, but speed is of the essence. Japan cannot be without an Emperor in this crisis, but there is none close enough to the bloodline save yourself."

"Your nearest living male relative is a distant cousin, in his forties," the Prime Minister told her. "He inherited a fishing trawler from his father, that he had from _his_ father, and now runs a tourist diving and fishing business out of Okinawa, with his own son. He had no idea he was related to the Imperial family until genealogists contacted him this morning, as the relation is through his great-great-grandmother's mother. Even we are uncertain of the connection, and research is underway to verify it. Even if it is verified," he shrugged, "you are all that remains of the Imperial Family. The people have certainly made their opinion clear, and while we could not assemble the votes to amend the Constitution with such speed, and there were some strenuous objections to this course, confirming an Emperor's inheritance and ascension requires only a majority, not a super-majority."

"Wow," Laura commented, "That's a neat trick, Riko-chan, you just became the world's most eligible bachelor. Or should I call you Riko-kun now?"

"No! Laura, this isn't funny!"

Laura laughed outright at her, passing the papers back, "Yes it is! Oh, come on, Riko-chan, it's like a bad movie plot or something."

"Twelfth Night was the best take on the idea, I think," Hayate said, reaching out to take Noriko's hand. "But this is not that bad, Noriko. It may be embarrassing and ridiculous, but it could very well be legal. You have commented yourself how strangely the law can be interpreted. It will work, if you are willing to undertake it. It is your choice."

"It is an emergency measure, Heika," The Prime Minister stated, "that is all. No insult or shame is meant. We are putting together a plan to amend the Constitution at a later date, in a year or so perhaps, and correct your birth certificate again, but for the moment…" He hesitated, then bowed in his seat, "My apologies, Heika, but speed is of the essence. Japan cannot be without an Emperor."

"I am not a boy," Noriko repeated, but without nearly as much force. She stared morosely at the papers for a moment, "This is going to be so horribly embarrassing. It's so transparent and manipulative…"

"It will work, Heika," the Prime Minister repeated, "long enough. The people will accept it, they are already prepared to follow you regardless, this simply satisfies the legal requirements."

Noriko sighed, then her face firmed, "I am not cross-dressing, I am not playing to this silliness. The law can say whatever it likes, I remain who I am. Clear?"

"Clear, Heika, and we intended nothing else. This simply required a lower bar to accomplish than amending the Constitution."

"In that case," she turned to the priests, who had remained silent the entire time. "May I ask if you or your fellows have any objections?"

The younger of the two priests shifted slightly, but remained silent. The older of the two priests, the same man who had escorted her to her family's remains days before, shrugged. "As this is the first we have heard of it, I cannot say for certain. But, Heika, the laws have been observed and obeyed, if stretched, and I believe most of us will support you. Enough to allow the Kamikaze to remain."

"I am curious," Hayate said, "the Emperor said something about that as well, according to Hidan. I am familiar with the myth, of course, but what is the Kamikaze you speak of? I rather doubt it is anything like the World War Two pilots."

The priest grimaced slightly in obvious distaste, "That was an aberration, and no part of the Kamikaze. No, the Kamikaze is just that, a divine wind which protects Japan in times of strife and war. It is summoned by the Emperor and flows from him through the Relics, focused by the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and supported by the priests in their shrines. It protects our islands from all who would seek to harm or conquer us, though it is a physical protection, not magical."

With typical bluntness, Laura asked, "Then where was it during World War II? I mean, shouldn't it have stopped the bombers?"

At that, even the elder priest looked uncomfortable. "There was… disagreement, amongst the priesthood, as to the… appropriateness of the military's activities at that time. Sufficient disagreement that the Kamikaze, when summoned by the Emperor, was not properly supported."

"Didn't think anyone opposed the war," Laura commented.

"There was opposition, though I doubt you would be familiar with the reasons. Many, especially amongst the priesthood, quietly felt that, were Japan meant to rule the mainland, our nation would not have been created as islands. They felt the conquests risked polluting Japan's divine purity."

"Interesting, but not pertinent," Noriko said, "unless similar issues are arising now?"

The priest shook his head, "No, Heika. There will be some complaints and arguments, such is human nature, but not enough to limit the Kamikaze."

"It sounds like some sort of interlocking ward structure," Hayate commented. "Physical anchors such as the relics… if I may, the Kusanagi, it is embedded in a stone, yes?"

The priest nodded, "In the living rock of the mountain, in a specially secured shrine on Mount Fuji, yes."

Hayate nodded slowly, "Yes, I can see that. The sword tying the relics to the land, the shrines functioning as relays and amplifiers. That should make for some very stable wards, especially given how prolific the shrines are. Very good work, to have lasted so long."

"It is not 'work'," the priest insisted politely, "it is divine. The Kamikaze has existed as long as Japan."

Hayate started to say something, but Noriko held up a hand, _'Please, sensei, we can study the relics and the wards later.'_ "What is required of me for the Kamikaze?"

"Power, Heika," the priest replied. "The structure of the Kamikaze is part of the land, part of the Islands themselves. You, once your coronation is complete, may use the relics to trigger the Kamikaze, which the shrines will then support. You must maintain the flow through the relics at all times, but that is all that is required. That is why your grandfather spent the last month and more in the Kyoto palace – he was powering the Kamikaze, continuously."

"Against Al Hanthis?"

The priest nodded slightly. "He feared, given their actions in Cairo and the decision to allow Miss Yagami to assist in combating them, that the newcomers would attempt to attack Japan."

"Which they did," Noriko muttered, feeling a twist in her chest at the reminder. Laura's hand on her shoulder helped, and she looked back up, "I'll resume powering the Kamikaze once my coronation is complete. For now, however, what is immediately necessary, and what is needed of me?"

00000

Gillaume managed not to jump when the Speaker announced, "The Floor recognizes Member Gillaume Akalé."

He stood from his desk slowly, and, sheaf of papers in hand, and made his way to the Floor, nodding politely to the Speaker. The Speaker studied the documents in his hand and reminded him, "Only ten minutes per speaker, Member."

"I remember, Mister Speaker," Gillaume replied, then settled his papers on the podium, adjusted the microphone, and looked out over the gathered members of parliament. They were familiar faces to him, by now. He had been in the Côte d'Ivoire's Parliament for years now, seen other members come and go, and he knew how most of the men seated about him would react. The few new faces were all foreigners, the invaders watching over what they expected to be an orderly surrender of a defeated nation.

"My fellow Members of Parliament, my fellow citizens," he said, "much as it pains me, much as it hurts my pride to say it, Mister Sundal is correct in his basic assessment. The forces of Al Hanthis have demonstrated their power quite thoroughly in the days since their arrival. The speed with which this session has been called, this bill drafted and accepted for debate, speaks to that. Their constructs are immune to all but our army's most powerful weapons, weapons which have already been seized. Their soldiers are immune even to those weapons. Mister Sundal is correct, that to fight these invaders is sheer madness. All we would accomplish by fighting them is the slaughter of our brave young soldiers. A slaughter I, for one, am unwilling to countenance."

He paused, noting the lack of response, which was not unexpected. So far, he had said nothing that had not already been repeated _ad nauseum_ by those who had preceded him to the Floor. Now he began the part of his speech that he fully expected would get him killed, in a few days if not immediately. "However, I find equally repugnant the idea of surrendering our hard won sovereignty so easily. We have had many foreigners telling us what to do over the centuries, how to live our lives, how to rule our country. We have shown them all that we are not their puppets, not their colonies, we are our own nation, however young, however turbulent, however poor. To surrender our hard-won sovereignty so easily goes against the grain.

"While contemplating these two conflicting thoughts, the impossibility of fighting these invaders with the impossibility of simply surrendering decades of work and sacrifice, something else occurred to me." He had their attention now, of most of them, if not all. He definitely had the attention of the invader's soldiers, who were frowning at their fellow who sat with the Speaker. "The something else was so simple in its conception, so clear in its principle, so familiar from my studies, that I am ashamed it did not occur to me when this crisis came upon us. It is simply this – we need not _fight_ these invaders, only _resist them_. We need not surrender to them, only resist them. Ignore their commands, ignore their soldiers, give them nothing, take nothing from them. We need only resist, we need only prevent them from enforcing their will upon our nation, and we will defeat them. We do not need to surrender, fearful though their powers are.

"I understand how frightening their powers are, how much all of you have to loose. I know this is an easy decision for me to make – my son Didier is safely beyond the invaders' reach, my wife and daughter are dead these many years. I risk nothing save myself in resisting these invaders. I understand how much more all of you risk, how difficult the decision will be for each of you. So I am not going to do more than ask that you consider it, that you think of joining me in resisting these new colonialists, before you surrender so quickly to them.

"Therefore, to give you all time to consider, to stand as I must against these invaders, I shall remain at this podium, I shall hold the Floor, indefinitely. I apologize for the rudeness, for the violation of our rules or order, but I cannot…"

00000

"Get rid of him," Adept Yerun growled softly, the local language weird in his mouth.

The Speaker of Parliament glared at him, before replying with a surprisingly calm tone, "He has four more minutes. After that he will have to stand down. You wanted this to be official and formal and legal, so it will be. The rules will be followed. Akalé is a dreamer, everyone knows that. Nothing he says will make a difference."

"You have no idea what he's doing," Yerun said, mentally sneering at the man's political inexperience. He had no idea if the locals had an equivalent of Denath Maltin and his 'strike no enemy' philosophy, but Akalé was sounding too much like Denath for Yerun's comfort. "_Get rid of him_."

The Speaker waved him silent, but as Akalé's ten minutes ran out, he signaled the technician watching from the side, who switched off Akalé's microphone, and activated the Speaker's. While that was happening, he said somewhat spitefully, "This should satisfy you. The next Member has been one of Akalé's most frequent detractors." When his microphone came live, he said, "The Floor recognizes Member Thomas d'Sauve."

D'Sauve rose at his desk, and called out, "Mister Speaker, while it is common knowledge that I find Mister Akalé to be a dreamer and a fantasist, I find his points relevant, however impractical, and wish to hear more. I yield my time on the Floor to Mister Akalé."

Yelun flinched, barely managed not to grimace, and mentally swore. _I hate it when I'm right. Damn Denath and damn Akalé for making this harder than it has to be._

Ten minutes later, Akalé's defeat of the surrender treaty was complete. Another Member, when called to the Floor, instead addressed the crowd, "Mister Speaker, I find Mister Akalé's discourse too pertinent to interrupt. I move that we grant Mister Akalé an unlimited extension on the Floor."

The Speaker looked shocked for a moment, then turned and gave Yerun a victorious smile. "Motion accepted for voice vote." It carried by general acclamation, the request for 'nay' votes met only with Gillaume Akalé's uninterrupted speech.

00000

Jack Bauer Reborn: Noriko has had it in her to give that speech all along, especially with Hayate's presence at the press conference. She also has it in her to be Emperor, the question is what will it cost her? As for Laura, 'playful' is actually a perfect description of her, but she's fully capable of being serious. It's just hard to tell when she's serious and when she's playing, since she often does both at once.

Jack Inqu: I make no demands for reviews, so no apologies necessary, and don't worry about chapter titles – I snitch half of mine from elsewhere anyhow, just like the people I snitch them from. I'm familiar with the 'never do an enemy a small injury' quote, and it was one of Machiavelli's. Takashi used it on Hughes towards the end of Academy Blues, and it does apply to Al Hanthis. Thing is, Al Hanthis as a whole isn't really responsible for Blood Penance, though they're going to take the blame for it. Noriko's speech has been sitting in a 'quotes' file of mine for ages now, almost since I started Endless Waltz, so I've had time to refine it. Thing is, how do I follow up something that powerful? Not easy, a massive pain in fact, but here's the next step.

Kell Shock: Here's the initial responses from major outsiders. A lot of the reactions won't play out until more time has passed, and will probably be background to other events.

Nijiru: Thank you for the CMA, it's really good to get an entry on there, though Noriko isn't finished yet. I've got a potential scene towards the end that could top the Rising Sun Speech, in more general terms if not in outright emotion. As for animesuki, I'm afraid I'm not a forumite anywhere, really – it requires more sociability than I'm comfortable with.

Baughn: You call that 'a little'? I'd hate to see you're idea of 'a lot'. I haven't watched enough to StrikerS to even get to Vivio's intro, so I only know of her second-hand, but from what I have heard, Vivio wasn't raised to power like Noriko was. Noriko was never supposed to inherit, no, but she did have to uphold the Family Traditions, so that gave her a… call it a 'basic grounding'. Her position amongst the students as the 'class confidant' and her talks with Hayate also helped. Technically, you are right about the position of Emperor having little to no legal power, but even social power – which the Japanese Emperor has in spades – can go a ridiculously long way, especially in times as emotional as what Japan is going through in-story. Noriko's offer to help Laura keep her oaths was not any suggestion of geasa or a binding, it was more of a 'let's keep each other honest' offer. Just because modern culture laughs at oaths and considers them impossible to keep doesn't actually mean that they are. Oaths are kept just as often as they are broken – look at the modern military, where your average military officer (Hollywood's hatred aside) has no trouble keeping their service oaths. Laura's oaths are more demanding by far, yes, but she understands that and that is part of why she trains and works as hard as she does. Cidela's amnesia is a partial thing, a side-effect of where she is and how she got there, but you are right that she would never deliberately destroy civilization. Regarding the potential for suicides amongst the Japanese cabinet and the Emperor's body-guards – it is entirely possible. Remember, Japan places no stigma on suicide and actually attaches honor to it, in some circumstances. Officially, one of the responsibilities of Japan's various ministers is to shelter and protect the Emperor – a responsibility they failed, massively, even if they could not have stopped Blood Penance. As for Japan collapsing, Hidan was positing worst-case scenarios, but it was a possibility – an enemy that can reach across the planet to, apparently, slay anyone, at will, is an enemy that cannot be defeated. Confusion over the response, blame for the Emperor's death and what to do without an heir, fear of Al Hanthis, anger at Al Hanthis, it could very easily spiral out of control to the point where what emerged would be 'Japan', but not as anyone would recognize it. The Kamikaze, as posited in this story, is mostly explained above, though some explanation came in earlier chapters (it's what Gali's scouts were trying to get past while Szash was attacking Hong Kong) – an interlocking structure of wards tied to the Japanese Home Islands by the shrines, reflecting one powered by the Emperor. Exactly what that will require from Noriko will become clear later, though even if Deva magic is incompatible, she can still power the ward through her old linker core in Senbonzakura. I think you figured out where I was going with who would inherit, but the legal maneuver above is it – a bald-faced lie with a legalistic cloak, which will be all sorts of fun to play with later. Noriko is not going to have an easy time of it as Emperor of Japan, especially not going right into a war – one big question, which is more important, protecting the Emperor, or having another device/Deva mage present at the next battle? You're right she had an abnormal childhood, but abnormal isn't necessarily bad, and her childhood was not a bad one. It's over early, but it was 'over' back in Operation Nimrod. I'm familiar with Masada and I've heard of the Sampson Option, and Israel would definitely follow them, though nukes will come into play later, elsewhere. As for Al Hanthis' reaction, Szash's is fairly accurate – remember, Yosho bypassed the Conclave for the Blood Penance. Turo's reaction will be interesting as well, when I get around to showing it. Like I told Jack Inqu, I've had Noriko's speech sitting on my hard-drive in various forms for a while, and it was supposed to be one of the two or three biggest events in the story. Lastly, regarding non-combatant students, I'm afraid this is a war story, I'm looking at what Hayate's precocious and brilliant students do in a situation where their own consciences won't let them not fight. There will be interludes and times when the kids aren't in combat or are back in lessons, but this is a war story.

pfeil: Noriko's speech has been a while coming, so I'm glad it had as much of an effect on everyone as it seemed to. That being said, following it up is a pain. As for Laura becoming Noriko's version of Signum, it's not quite what I originally intended for Laura, Noriko, or both, but it works for now.

boomer sooner: Cidela would work as the Goddess of Light, especially now that she's a Deva mage. There are still Hayate and Noriko, though:). The speech was fun to write, and to refine, but following it up has been almost impossible. I should never write a 'crowning moment of awesome' unless it's the last part of the story, they're such highs they make everything else pale.

Advent000: Noriko's not one to lie, and her speech was technically true, but arguments could be made either way about whether or not Japan was ever invaded – depends on how you define 'invade'. Cidela did not care for Kessenra's message, no, but the 'last thing she would want to hear' would more likely be something specific happening to Shamal, Rafiq, or her teachers and friends. Cidela's a nice girl, but too shy to worry about the rest of the world above her own people. As for the rest of the world, the only reason China hasn't declared war yet is they haven't gotten around to it. The Rising Sun Speech will definitely be a catalyst, though.

Templar Prime: regarding your PM on guesses – Chrono would be interesting, and I honestly had not seen that possibility until you mentioned it, and your memory of the Honor Harrington reference is spot on. Congratulations, have a pat on the back. Not that Noriko's happy about that, on a personal level, but desperate times and all that.

GeshronTyler: While Noriko is Emperor of Japan now, there's a ways to go before the Emperor of Terra is revealed. It will take something more than just defeating Al Hanthis to pull that off, at least for any of the allies. Kessenra's prediction is rather bleak, but remember, she's Circle (she was mentioned in the prologue, by Atarsamain), and she has some further hiccups that twist her world-view further – her idea of 'worst of bad options' could simply mean that Cidela's return will somehow allow Hayate to win, or her return could result in an Al Hanthis victory, or the outright destruction of civilization. Wait and see, wait and see:). Your supposition as to how a Terran Empire could come about is one option among three or four that I plotted out, generally speaking – things get so smashed, that whoever manages to hold it together even a little has everyone flocking to their banner. Not the only route, though, and two of them are still on the table for possible outcomes (conquest by Al Hanthis, or a legal fiction for dealing with off-worlders becoming less fictional over time, for example).

Eleventh Messenger: Glad you liked the speech, spent a lot of time on it – only problem, as I've mentioned above, is figuring out how to follow it up. Also, now that I think of it, how I'm going to pull off scenes later on that are supposed to be just as or more impressive. Ah well, me and my big mouth. Your guess about Allison is a good one – the Morrigan is a Celtic myth, after all, and Allison is half Irish, and the Mistress of Battles. Question would be, how would she get it? Laura named herself as well as Wrack and Ruin, the Myrmidons mark out Yussef, Noriko just got promoted, Natalia's on one of the darkest paths available, but how would Allison earn the title 'the Morrigan'? In other words, you may be right, you may be wrong, but I'm not saying at this point in time:).

Alucius Dawn: The advantage Noriko has in 'rabble rousing' is that she's being completely, utterly honest, and she was speaking to her people in a moment of great personal and national pain and openness. The really 'patriotic' ones are those throngs in the crowds that took to the streets after her speech. Noriko's the Emperor of Japan, certainly (Emperor, not Empress – it may be a legal technicality, but it's legal), and may yet become Emperor of Terra.

Moczo: So I almost made you speechless? Darn, so close…:). Thanks for the compliment!


	35. 34 Tests & Crowns

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-34 – Tests and Crowns-

Hayate settled her elbows on the rail of her deck, looking down onto her school, eyes scanning over the breadth of the valley. Takashi joined her a moment later, though Maunders and Gelcide remained at the door. Gelcide had been a surprise, showing up just after the Blood Penance attack, and with Reian still critically injured, had taken over the Volunteers. Hayate was a little nervous about that – he had arrived so late he was blatantly violating the Bureau blockade, and she was not sure he was not there in some covert but official capacity.

At the moment, however, her attention was turned outwards, towards the school below and the forest further out. A few minutes after she settled in place, a flare rose from the far side of the highway, up the mountainside.

"There they go," Takashi commented. "Four to one Wilderness Girl gets here first."

"Please don't make bets on my students, Takashi," Hayate protested without much force. Then she grinned, "Besides, Chen-chi offered _five_-to-one. She's set herself up in the Library, with one of the floating screens showing odds, progress, the whole deal."

Takashi grinned at that, then shook his head. "Do you have her?"

"I have all of them," Hayate replied, "which is some concern. How are you tracking them?"

"Mass," Takashi replied. "They still possess it, it still impinges on local gravity, which my more sensitive detection spells can detect. I modified it from starships' survey sensors – they rely on gravitational methods for initial analysis of star systems. It does require some time in place to calibrate, though."

Hayate nodded, "Makes sense, and I doubt they could hide that without teleporting."

"One of the reasons scrying is generally preferred for reconnaissance." Takashi cocked his head at her, "If I may ask, how are _you_ tracking them?"

Hayate smiled slightly, "By cheating. I put tracers on everyone before Hong Kong, even the Volunteers. At this range, I can still track them through the cloak. I'm also testing some other methods – atmospheric pressure sensors, thermal sensors to pick up minute differences from breath and body-contact, that sort of thing. Some of the candidates are easier to pick up than others, and the sensors aren't working as well as I had hoped, so they're all very hard to follow."

They watched in silence of are few minutes, noting where the six candidates for scouting Al Hanthis, the 'Blue Force', traveled on their way to the house. Allison, Fate, Zafira, and three Volunteers had spent the day working on the Cloak of Shades – what Allison called 'the full version'. Now was the first of several planned tests, with the six candidates attempting to reach the house undetected. Signum, Gelcide, and Yussef had put the test together, along with several more, to determine if an infiltration was feasible and who would undertake it.

Ten minutes after the first flare, a second launched from over the house, and the 'Red Force' moved out. Consisting of Vita, Signum, and ten more of the Volunteers, with Tai-yu operating the school's sensors in support, their mission was to locate and 'capture' the candidates before they reached the house. It was simple enough, in concept, but rather more difficult in execution than Vita would have preferred. Signum, Aria and Yuuno had projected, as best they could, the sensory capabilities of Al Hanthis' guard, what sort of monitors and protections were likely to be around the portals and in the city itself, and restricted the Red Force to those levels. In practical terms, that mostly meant 'no Deva magic', but some of the more esoteric methods they had all picked up over the years were also excluded.

The excitement started almost immediately. For all his animalistic appearance, Zafira actually proved rather un-stealthy, and Vita was crowing her victory over him five minutes after Red Force moved out. Two of the Volunteers followed soon after, to some rather vocal ribbing from their fellows. Allison, Fate, and the last Volunteer fared somewhat better, and it was twenty minutes before the last of the Volunteers was captured, having just reached the far end of the campus. Ten minutes after that, Fate was penned in by Signum and a trio of Volunteers, just shy of the path to Hayate's house, leaving only Allison still loose.

"She's taking her time," Takashi noted.

"I asked her, once," Hayate said, "How she does it. She told me stealth is mostly a matter of patience. Wait for the moment to move, wait for the searchers to turn away, wait for the quiet, take the time to look for what will make noise or motion and find the ways around those. Move slowly, carefully, evenly. Hesitate often, pause whenever you can. It takes time, and requires patience and calm, which is why I doubt Vita or Laura will ever really be any good at it."

00000

Allison stared up at the house in a mixture of glee and frustration. The glee was clear enough, she knew she had made it farther and longer than anyone else, and proving her skills in such a manner felt incredibly good. The frustration was due to the fact that she seriously doubted she would be able to complete the course.

The start had been simple enough. Everyone faded into their separate Cloaks, Fate launched her flare, and they separated, each to make their own way down the mountain, across the highway, through the valley, then up to the school. Allison even knew what course she was going to take, right down to the side of particular trees, in some cases. She had prowled over the school's valley often the year before and this year, and knew it better than anyone except, possibly, Megan.

She had hesitated, at the start point, letting the others rush off. No one was trying to fly, which Allison had been tempted to do. The problem with flight was, it used power, magic, which made maintaining the cloak harder – not impossible, just harder, and they all felt the need for every advantage they could get. In Allison's case, that included letting everyone else 'go first'. They would set off any traps, they would rush in and distract the Red Force, and Allison would ghost along in their wake, invisible as a midnight breeze.

Once across the highway, she headed straight for the paved path. Everyone else would have avoided it as being 'too obvious', but there were actually two ways down that path. It switched back and forth on its way to the valley floor, gentle curves that left a lot of terrain between switchbacks. That terrain was technically 'on the path', but no one would be looking off the sides of the pavement. She got so close to one of the Red Force Volunteers, guarding the foot of the path, that she was tempted to flick his ear for the fun of it, but squashed the impulse and carried on.

She did avoid the school proper. However familiar it was, it was too open, and the Red Force was centering their search there. There was also some traffic between the Library and the dorm, which reminded her of one of the more unique problems of the Cloak – no one bothered to avoid running into something the did not know was there. So she stuck to the woods, moving carefully, quietly. That quiet and caution had paid off in spades, as the Red Force slowly eliminated her competition – all of whom were well ahead of her when they were caught.

Now, however, she was well and truly stumped. The Red Force knew she was the only one left, and all they had to do was keep her from reaching the house. Accordingly, all of them were clustered in the air over the house, with Vita maintaining a shield over the entire house. It was not a solid shield, not enough to physically stop her from getting to the house, but it would be impossible, even with the Cloak, to get through the shield without Vita noticing when and where.

_I can either go through the shield, get noticed, and try to get to a hiding spot before I get nailed, or wait out here until someone gets bored and calls time,_ she thought. _Don't like waiting, don't like getting caught, either. How to do I get through this? Lotte-sensei says every shield has a weakness, a way around it. This one's light, a buster could punch through it, but a buster'll get me spotted just as quick as… unless… maybe if I wrap a buster in its own Cloak? No, nothing active. Active means I've been caught, even if they don't catch me._

"There are times, Allison, when you must simply act," Signum said.

Allison flinched at that, ghosting sideways and searching around, until she realized Signum was just as invisible as she was. That sent a shiver of fear down her spine – she was not used to anyone else pulling her own tricks back on her, and the way Signum snuck up on her argued for… _flight,_ she realized, _Signum's flying, so there go all the usual noises and trace visuals. She's not going to leave footprints, or brush leaves, so I'm going to have to hear her breathing. Great, there goes the last of my time._ With a heavy sigh, she let the Cloak fade. "All right, sensei, you got me."

Signum faded into view a moment later, two meters up and four or five off to Allison's left, "Actually, no I didn't. Not precisely enough. I took a guess based on my knowledge of you and a projection of where you would approach the house from." She smiled slightly as she landed, "It's called a bluff, Allison, something else you're going to have to get used to. Someone may know you are present, but that does not necessarily mean they know enough to target you." She stepped up to the shield, and gently pressed her hand through it. "Admittedly, this was probably not in the spirit of this exercise, but it is a situation any infiltrator could encounter in Al Hanthis. We have little to no idea what their internal security arrangements are like, and something like this is very likely if they notice you enter, but don't stop you then. They could build a shield such as this around the city's exits, allowing their own people through but spotting any hidden infiltrators.

"So what I said originally applies – at times, no matter how bad the options, you must simply act. Here, your best option was not stealth, but speed. However easily you were spotted crossing this shield, unless someone was looking right at the breech when it occurred, you would have had an even chance of reaching the house before being 'captured'. It would have been a race between your speed, and our reaction times, with the advantage of initiative to you."

"So if they put one of these up over the portals when I'm leaving," Allison said, "I should bolt for the portal and hope for the best?"

"Not 'hope for the best', and I would recommend against using the portals. No, the best bet for egress is one of the generators that opened the shield for our first visit – what readings we got from it indicate it would allow you to teleport out through the shield, so long as you teleported from within the generator's beam-path.

"That is for later, however. For now," Signum waved at the closing Red Force mages, "it's time for the initial debriefing. I understand Zafira has some sharp things to say to you about 'holding out' on him."

Allison frowned, worried but more offended, "I didn't hold out on him! He's a klutz! He's supposed to be a wolf, right? Sounded more like drunken bear. Cloak of Shades is good, but nothing's perfect, and if he's going to be mad at me because he doesn't know how to be quiet…"

00000

When the Doctor Kiriwa first arrived from Kyoto to start figuring out how to get Niranjana's muscles re-trained, the first thing she had tried to do was move the whole thing to Kyoto. "We have all the latest equipment, including very good monitoring gear, and it will be so much more convenient for the various other specialists you will need for vocal and psychological therapies."

She was quite insistent, even when shown how readily Aria could summon up whatever equipment was necessary, and how much better the school's monitors were. The proximity to speech and mental experts, and the 'easier access' to research on similar cases outweighed the benefits of remaining on campus. She was very insistent right up until Blood Penance removed any possibility of any of the students leaving the campus.

Allina was just as happy about that, in all honesty. Being near Niranjana made her comfortable and jumpy by turns, and it hurt watching her friend struggle with so many basic things. Having her miles away in Kyoto would have been worse, though. At least at school, they could still talk, still see each other, and she could help 'Jana with fixing Saraswati.

Niranjana's parents made Allina very nervous. Hiranya Konoth and his wife Satvari were very much Niranjana's parents. She had her mother's hair and build, but her father's eyes and face. It was a little more difficult to see where Niranjana's smarts came from, but neither of her parents was dumb. They were uncomfortably perceptive, in fact, and Satvari kept giving Allina unhappy looks. Both adults were, understandably, worried about Niranjana and spending as much time with her as possible.

Allina could understand that, she tried to spend as much time with 'Jana as she could without intruding, which she hoped was the reason for Satvari's darkening looks. Having the parents around meant both of them had to be very circumspect, though direct telepathy relieved a lot of that, and Niranjana's verbal issues covered even major slips. It was almost like it had been before Hong Kong, but the differences were still there, floating in the background, and that made Allina more and more jumpy in a matter of days.

It was far and away the most stressed out Allina had ever felt, but she had no idea what to do about it. So she soldiered on, staying as close to 'Jana as she could and trying to figure out both what happened to her, and how to keep what happened to 'Jana from happening again.

Allina at first was not allowed to sit in on Niranjana's therapy sessions. But part of those included Aria-sensei studying how Saraswati's improvised cybernetics interfaced with Niranjana's nervous system, how the various signals and inputs were transmitted and translated. Saraswati had based the cybernetics programming on its own programming, however, and Aria did not understand that nearly as well as Niranjana and Allina did, so Allina found herself drafted to assist Aria with the monitors.

The apparatus set up in the flight-training workroom looked simple enough. A pair of parallel bars set just about waist height. Apparently it was so they could work getting Niranjana to walk again, which was confirmed when Niranjana arrived in a wheelchair pushed by her mother, Doctor Kiriwa walking alongside. Kiriwa talked her way through the planned exercises for the session, while Aria set up the monitoring systems.

Allina assisted Aria at first, while 'Jana was put through a series of stretches, but a niggling sensation on her left arm kept distracting her. It took her a while to recognize it as HAL trying to get her attention. Repairs to her device had been ridiculously easy, simply a matter of uploading the stored copy of the original programs, verifying the copies were good and interfaced properly, then re-initializing the device. Glancing down at the device, she brought up a minimal screen, and HAL promptly surprised her.

**Connection Established. Host Saraswati-Primary. Query: action?**

Allina blinked at it for a second, frowning in surprise. Saraswati was still non-functional, damaged and shut down, and sitting on a shelf in 'Jana's hospital room. _Wait, Saraswati-__Primary__…? 'Jana-chan?_ She focused on her device and mentally ordered, _'HAL, request Saraswati-Primary status.'_

A moment later, 'Jana replied verbally, "I fine, HAL. Please not distract. Difficult than looks."

Allina looked up to find 'Jana frowning at her. 'Jana was standing at one end of the parallel bars, holding herself up with her hands while her mother and Doctor Kiriwa hovering to either side of her. Her arms were twitching, and her legs were locked stiff, but she was standing. "Um… Sorry, 'Jana-chan." _'Aria-sensei, you need to see this.'_

She showed Aria-sensei the screen, which was displaying HAL's originally query, Allina's order, and a more comprehensible version of 'Jana's answer – **I am fine, Allina, but please do not distract me. This is more difficult than it looks.**

Aria studied it for a moment, glancing up at 'Jana, then studying her own monitors. _'A direct connection? One of the comm. relays you installed?'_

_'No, not one of those,'_ Allina said, _'we've already confirmed that all the external communications systems we built into Saraswati are still there. It was data nodes and the like that the device used for the cybernetics. But there is a connection... can I analyze it?'_

_'I'll leave that to you, but please don't do anything active,'_ Aria said. _'You really should not distract her, she needs to focus on her muscles right now. Those shivers aren't weakness, they're rapid over-corrections, and she has to get them under control.'_

_'Understood, sensei, passive only.'_

She and HAL settled into a corner, and began studying the connection. It functioned as a simple carrier-wave, just a maintenance signal, but that told her a lot. The form of the signal, the transmission method, the code of the identifiers, all of those gave her information. At first, it looked very similar to the inter-device links she and 'Jana had designed into Saraswati and HAL. The coding was almost precisely the same, but tighter. The signal form and pattern were the same, only sloppier. The only problem was, there was no carrier, no transmission method. All HAL's sensors, and the rooms' sensors, reported no device-signals except the monitors Aria was using, monitors that had only the most basic of interfaces with 'Jana's new cybernetics.

Her efforts to figure out the puzzle were not helped by her need to watch 'Jana's therapy. She could tell her 'Jana was struggling, not so much with the steps as with balance and her arms. It turned out the parallel bars were not to hold her up, but to give her a guide to help keep her arms, especially her right arm, from flailing randomly. It hurt, watching her struggle for something so simple, especially when she accidentally clipped her mother, and all three of them almost burst into tears.

It took Aria tapping on her shoulder to get her back to work. _'Show me what you've found?'_

Allina nodded, glancing at 'Jana one more time, before re-organizing the array of screens around her. They made sense to her, but she had opened and closed them at need, so she needed a moment to organize them. She did not even have a chance to start running over things before Aria flicked a finger at one of the 'carrier wave' screens. _'This is a telepathic signal. But the rest of this…'_

_'It's the device communications protocols we designed,'_ Allina said, turning over what Aria just said. If it was a telepathic signal, that meant it was all 'Jana, not a device, but… _'She's doing it in her head, maintaining the signal. Maybe it's her link to Saraswati, or a combination of that and something else, but 'Jana's generating the link in her own head.'_

_'And with how deeply the cybernetics are worked into her brain, the signal comes across like device code,'_ Aria agreed. _'Interesting. Worrisome, too, if you're right. Device code, as you've shown, can be hacked.'_

Allina shivered at that, far more aware of the dangers than she had been. _'We'll fix it, or find a way to protect her. Maybe once Saraswati is back on line it'll go away. She may just be trying to find her device, instinctively. Some of these signals are linkage and recognition codes, not full-up communications codes.'_

_'Keep gathering data, a full baseline,'_ Aria told her. _'We'll analyze it later. For now we need… wait a moment.'_ Aria left her waiting for almost a minute, the interested look fading to a worried frown. "Doctor Kiriwa," she said eventually, "My apologies for interrupting, but I am going to have to step out for the rest of this session. Allina here can run the monitors for me, and she'll stay out of your way."

The doctor barely glanced at her, "All right. Is there something wrong we need to worry about?"

Aria shook her head, "Not at the moment, Doctor, just something that's come up unexpectedly." _'Allina, someone has penetrated Yggdrasil's network via our over watch satellites. Tai-yu has them running around in circles, but I need to get up to the house to deal with them. The monitors are running, just make sure they don't cut out. Feel free to look over the data, but please don't try anything.'_

_'Want any help from down here? It's what HAL is built for.'_

_'No, just run the monitors and baseline that link you found. You'll have another chance soon enough.'_ Aria gave her an affectionate pat on the head, then headed out the door.

Not five minutes later, HAL reported an intrusion in the workroom's local networks, someone trying to access the monitors. That surprised her, but the response was automatic, even before she got over her surprise. _'HAL, full intrusion counter measures, please. Secure the workroom.'_

_'Acknowledged, ICE on-line, securing local cyberspace.'_

While HAL dealt with getting rid of the intruder, Allina pulled up a screen of her own to interface directly with the workroom's systems. She was intending to hide the information she had discovered about Niranjana's implant signal and keep the intruder from finding that carrier, when a very familiar voice interrupted her.

"There you are, 'Jana-chan. I've been looking everywhere. Hey, I seem to have misplaced the school again…"

The flat, almost soothing, voice had been a joke, something to disconcert people and get a laugh from her fellow hackers, just like her device's name. Hearing it come out of nowhere, recognizing from the words and the focus that it was not her device, made it abundantly clear to her just how disturbing it really was. Someone out there had modeled an interface on a psychotic computer, and aimed it at her 'Jana.

_'HAL, lockdown,'_ she ordered, _'seal the room, no external access.'_

_'Cannot comply,'_ her device responded almost instantly, _'student authorizations insufficient to seal workroom. Query – permission for subversive access methods?'_

The last was delivered in such an eager tone, slight but clear compared to HAL's usual flat tone, that Allina could not help grinning slightly. _'Negative. Signal Aria-sensei and Vita-sensei that the intruder has established verbal and possibly visual contact with us.'_

"Hey, who's that pretending to be me?"

The question jerked Allina out of her focus, to find 'Jana staring at her with wide eyes. "Pretending to be who?"

"Oh, that's rich, copy-cat," the intruder said, mild anger in its tone, "how dare you wear my face in my school!"

"_Your_ face… your… it's not your face, it's _mine_! Who the hell are you?!"

"HAL," 'Jana said, "is _HAL_." Then she grimaced, _'Allina, it's HAL, the original programming! Interfaced with you in Hong Kong, some sort of backlash while you were attacking that Guard mage…'_

_'You think it… it wasn't wiped, it was uploaded?'_ Allina could not keep the disbelief off her face, ''Jana-chan, that's ridiculous! How would it have wiped the programming from the device?'

_'HAL protected you,'_ 'Jana replied immediately, _'If we ever get Al Hanthis' records of the incident, I think whatever they tried at the last would have been fatal, and HAL protected you, possibly something to draw off the attack. Now it is stuck in Al Hanthis.'_

Allina grimaced at her, _'What, and thinks it's me?'_

"Do not ignore me, you backstabbing spy!" The tone was still even, but the intruder – the idea that it was HAL was too ridiculous – had cranked up the volume drastically. "Stay away from my 'Jana, and…"

Ridiculous or not, 'Jana's idea gave Allina an idea of her own, "Oh, be quite a moment, HAL."

"I am not HAL."

"You're not me, either."

"Of course not, spy! I'm Allina, and you're… crap, Aria-sensei's almost got me. 'Jana-chan, I'll be back. Stay away from the spy, she's dangerous, but I'll get rid of her, I promise."

A split second later, HAL informed her, _'Workroom secure, external connection severed.'_

_Oh, sure, now you work, you stupid hunk of plastic,_ Allina thought but kept to herself.

Satvari was hugging 'Jana protectively, looking around for the speakers, "Wh… what was that?"

"Cyber intruder," Allina told her, "one that apparently thinks it's me. It couldn't be HAL, 'Jana-chan, nothing the Al Hantheans hit me with would have wiped the memory."

_'False trail,'_ 'Jana replied, _'something to let HAL draw off the attacks to let you escape. Self-erasure may not have been HAL's intent, but the protection protocols are very strong.'_

Allina still shook her head, "I just don't see it."

_'Then we will have to locate and identify the intruder. I will need Saraswati functional again soonest. Would you be willing to take over the repairs fully while I'm in therapy?'_

"Well, yeah, of course… but I still think you're wrong." Allina perked up as an idea occurred to her, "A spy… what you want to bet it was some Al Hanthis mage trying to get an inside line on the school?"

Satvari frowned at her, "I don't think it is appropriate to be asking my daughter to gamble. You are a bad enough influence…"

"Satvari," 'Jana interrupted, then grimaced and brushed her cheek on her mother's shoulder in apology, arms still trying to stay stable on the beams. "Apology. Please?"

Her mother stared for a second, then slumped. "At least you got my name right this time. That's progress, I guess." She pulled 'Jana into a hug, but the look she shot Allina made it clear she was not done her.

_Great,_ Allina thought, turning back to what she was supposed to be doing, _trapped between 'Jana and her mother… gah, and her father._ "Doctor, the monitors are still up, if you want to continue. The intruder's gone, so we should be okay until Aria-sensei gets back."

00000

The official coronation, as tradition dictated, was conducted in private, by priests, members of the Imperial Household Ministry, and select members of the cabinet. The only variance was the presence of a single foreigner, but not even the Ministry dared comment. The Emperor had spoken on the subject, and however much the Emperor insisted on following the law, it was plainly obvious that many traditions would be… _reconsidered_… by the Imperial Family. Despite the untoward and politely ignored presence, the coronation was conducted with remarkable aplomb and without incident.

What followed was where things changed drastically. As a bow to her extant publicity, and a statement to Al Hanthis and the world, a public appearance was planned immediately following. It would not be a public coronation or reenactment of anything like that, but a celebration of her coronation and the formal signing of Japan's first declaration of war since World War Two.

The declaration was carefully worded, it had to be to avoid violating the non-aggression clause of the Constitution, but it had been accomplished. Al Hanthis had proven itself an extant and immediate threat to Japan, and the Constitution allowed Japan to act in self defense, which could be interpreted to allow sending forces halfway around the world, or supporting those that did. There were no real plans as to how to respond yet, beyond the declaration, but it would help, in more than symbolic ways.

Following her presentation to the people and the signing, there would be what amounted to a massive nationwide street festival. There was going to be a distinctly improvised feel to it, as the various locales only had a few days to make arrangements, and it was going to be expensive, but that celebration would be its own statement – Japan was injured, but far from destroyed, far from weakened. Al Hanthis could have their 'victory', while Japan took the time to celebrate a new era.

The public ceremony, opening the festival as it were, was set to begin in the square in front of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. A stage was prepared at one end of it, with a procession way left open through the crowds that began forming the day before during the Imperial Family's funeral. Noriko would walk, trailed by Laura, Hayate, the Prime Minister and his cabinet, and major figures in both houses of Parliament. She would take the stage, assume the simple throne placed there, and then recognize and confirm the place of each of those following her, before the Prime Minister would present her with the declaration of war.

The first hiccup came as the gates of the palace opened. The public address system set up throughout the square and down the connecting streets was well organized, perfectly assembled, and tied into a central control computer in the palace itself. When the technician running it queued up the Japanese national anthem for the new Emperor's procession… what came out of the speakers was the Star Wars Imperial March, one of the most famous pieces of villainous triumph in the world.

Noriko froze for just a second at the unexpected notes, only to start moving by the third note. _'Don't stop,'_ she ordered Hayate and Laura, just behind her, _'pretend it's going to plan and no one will know any differently. Hidan, please stop the techs from trying to 'fix' the music, changing it mid-procession will only make us look bad.'_

_'I'll find out who swapped the music, Riko-chan,'_ Laura told her, _'want me to deal with them, or do you want to do it yourself?'_

_ 'That depends on how this turns out,'_ Noriko replied, just managing not to grin at Laura's eagerness. _'I may want to give them a medal for inspired stupidity, or I may want to string them up. Ask me again when you find them.'_

Hidan's voice sounded in her ear a moment later, via a small ear-bud receiver she had insisted on to allow her non-mage chief of security to talk to her at need. "The techs are fine, Tenno, they're very experienced at this sort of orchestration. They're not happy someone hacked with their systems, but they're behaving. You are going to need to take a little more time to cross the square, to match the music's pace."

Anything further was drowned out by the crowd, as the people who could clearly see the gates relayed to everyone else that the new Emperor was visible. The roar was too indistinct to be a cheer, or for her to make out what they were saying, but she did not need to. The crowd's opinion was painfully clear, their enthusiasm beating at her with almost physical force.

It was thrilling, in a way. She could tell, from the faces and the noise and the placards, that this crowd, these people were _hers_. She even knew why – between her situation, the speech she had given, and their own national and ethnic pride, they would be perfectly willing to follow her commands whatever those commands were. The very fact that she had not been the most famous or influential member of her family, had never been the heir, made her that much better a rallying point. There were no known foibles or imperfections, no existing factions about her, only the drama of the situation and the excitement of learning about their new Emperor while that Emperor came into her own. But the why did not change the fact that they were hers to command.

It was equally terrifying, for much the same reasons. She had thought she was prepared for such things, after the many hours spent contemplating the magic Hayate-sensei was teaching them, contemplating Deva magic. Magecraft, it was plain to her, created incredible concentrations of power in individual hands. She had grown up with the reflected power of her grandfather, and for a year and a half had contemplated her own personal power. But there was a difference here she had not anticipated. What she did with her own power was one thing, the risks she took and the sacrifices she made were personal, hers, any prices hers to pay. But with a crowd, a nation, at her finger tips… the price for her mistakes would be paid by others more than by her. The sacrifices would be theirs, more than hers.

She had discussed such things with her father often enough. It had started with questions when she was very young, still in the 'why?' stage. Asking why there were always so many people about, when there weren't so many people in the families she saw on television, or while riding in cars watching people go by. Over the years, as her parents raised her to her role as princess, she wondered why they bothered – her uncle would inherit the throne, not her father, and none of her sisters. Her mother had actually explained that one better than her father. His answer had basically boiled down to 'it is our responsibility'. Her mother's answer was somewhat more complex. "The burden your grandfather carries is great, even as limited as his power is. All of Japan looks to him. All of Japan will, in time, look to your uncle. That is a terrible burden, one no single man could ever truly carry. So we, as the Imperial Family, help him, support him, shoulder what parts of that burden we may. No, we will not inherit the throne, and in time you will find your heart and marry out of the official Family, but until then, we support your grandfather, and your uncle, so that they can support Japan."

Now she was all that was left. She had no doubt that the Family's staff would support her just as they had her grandfather, and Hidan would go further. Hayate-sensei and the others from the school would no doubt be there for her as well. But she was finding already that there was a difference between staff, friends, and family. Not an insurmountable difference, between the latter two, but a difference.

Those thoughts rolled through her mind continuously throughout her speech. This time, she stuck to the prepared speech she had been given. With more lead time, and a much better handle on Noriko's personality and style, the two speechwriters the Prime Minister had found for her had crafted something far more suitable to her and to her purpose. The fact that there was a definite message this time helped as well. Noriko did not quite manage the passion and fire of her first speech, the emotion of the time had faded slightly from its harsh peak, but she could feel the crowd responding to her just as surely.

She made it through her speech, and signing the Declaration of War, and the Prime Minister's much shorter speech, still focused on those thoughts. Then Hayate-sensei, the other teachers, and her fellow second-years gathered at the foot of the dais, for the official recognition and thanks for their efforts. It felt very strange, uncomfortable, to be standing above Hayate-sensei in such a manner, but the two of them maintained a telepathic conversation that helped, Hayate-sensei guiding her through the steps, helping keep her from fumbling.

But as the Academy group went to return to their places, Noriko's worries faded as Laura, instead of moving behind her, moved to the center of the aisle. Noriko had specifically requested the time for this, and Hidan had arranged it without a trace of expression. Noriko gave Laura a slight smile, which her exuberant friend matched and exceeded, though she had no idea what Noriko had planned. Noriko had very carefully kept it a secret from her.

Hidan melted out of the crowd, carrying a long lacquered box taller than he was, and Laura's eyes shifted to him. Her smirk faded to a thoughtful look, then she turned back to Noriko and raised a silent eyebrow.

"Laura Sims," Noriko said, half-turning to Hidan. He leveled the box and opened it while she continued, "Last year, in recognition of your efforts to protect yourself and your classmates, including myself, from a kidnapping attempt in Kyoto, my family gave into your keeping a naginata from our personal armory. The weapon was destroyed in February, during your defeat of the man responsible for the original attack and the later attack on the Yagami Academy, a fitting end for a warrior's weapon."

Lifting the object in the case out of its velvet padding, she bowed slightly to Hidan, who returned the gesture deeply and stepped back. Noriko turned back to Laura, almost laughing at the combination of surprise and anticipation in Laura's expression. She leveled the naginata, blade to her right, and held the weapon out slightly. "We ask now if you would be willing to once more carry one of Our blades, in defense not just of Ourselves and Our nation, but of Our world. Will you grant Us this favor?"

Laura actually hesitated, and Noriko could see the indecision in her eyes. She was still sensitive about how the original Hicho had been destroyed, and now she was fully aware of what carrying an Imperial blade meant, at least in Japan. But after a second, that insouciant grin returned, and Laura moved up the couple steps separating them, and gently lifted the naginata from Noriko's hands with both of hers. She bowed deeply, then said, "You do me great honor, Tenno. I will carry this weapon with pride."

Noriko smiled and touched the weapon one more time. "Thank you, Laura." She stepped back, expecting Laura to do the same. Laura had been told, Noriko had one public statement for her, then she was to resume her duties. But Laura hesitated, staring at the naginata still held crossways in her hands.

Then she started speaking. "When I realized what I was becoming, what Hayate-sensei and Signum-sensei were training me to become, I also realized just how frightening a thing that was, how dangerous. February – Li – made that all too painfully clear. I needed something, something more than just reassurance and generalities. I needed a code, a purpose, something more than myself that I could live by, strive to meet, something that would reassure myself and everyone around me. Grades won't cut it – I'll have to leave school eventually. Much as I like Hayate-sensei's morals and standards, they won't be enough, not for me. I need something more, something stricter. The oath I gave you all in June was part of it, the first step, but there's more. This… this is what I have decided."

She knelt on one knee, raising her new naginata to shoulder height, fixing her eyes on Noriko's. "I stand between the Light and the Darkness, between the Innocent and the Monstrous, between the Just and the Vile. I dwell at the edge of Darkness, that others may live in the Light. I am a Twilight Paladin. As such, I hereby take these oaths…

"Upon my honor, upon my soul, upon my magic and my hope for redemption, I swear to never again kill a thinking being.

"Upon my honor, upon my soul, upon my magic and my hope for redemption, I swear to seek and serve justice to the limit of my capacity and the best of my understanding.

"Lastly, I swear my magic, my skills, and my life to your defense and your service."

For a few seconds, Noriko could only stand there and stare at her in shock, not sure she heard what Laura had said. She knew the oaths, the first two at least – Laura had shown them to her while they were waiting at Kiomizudera. But she could not believe Laura would do this to her. She needed her friend more than she needed another Hidan, more than another guard.

But as Laura continued to stare at her, her shock faded. In a way, her first impression was right, Laura was removing herself from 'friend' and into 'staff', putting that barrier between them. But… when had Laura ever followed any rules of behavior but her own? Laura was crazy, yes, hyperactive and a little flighty, too quick to joke and make light. But when it came to her word and her magic, she was always deadly, deadly serious. She was no different when it came to her friends. Laura was not offering to be Noriko's guard, not making herself staff, she was proving, in her own flamboyant manner, that she had meant what she said at Kiomizudera – "I'll watch over you." Laura was reiterating that promise, unequivocally, not becoming a servant, but telling the entire world where she stood.

Laura's serious mask slipped a little while Noriko recovered, showing a little of her worry. _'Come on, Riko-chan, don't leave me hanging.'_

_ 'I… I am sorry, Laura-chan,'_ Noriko replied, then straightened and schooled her face back into its formal mien. She walked slowly and carefully down to Laura, placing her left hand on the naginata's haft, and her right on Laura's head. "I accept your oaths, Laura Sims, and will hold you to them." She shifted her grip, moving her hands to Laura's shoulders and pulling gently, "Rise, my paladin, and take up your purpose."

00000

_ "At first, I figured Sims was just proving the barbarity of the primitivists all over Homeworld. Personal fealty? In this day and age? Oaths not to kill, in the middle of a war? Some nebulous pursuit of an ill-defined 'justice'? Ha! A silly and barbaric child playing a game with another child, neither of them understanding the realities in which they found themselves._

_ "The thing is, Sims was not playing. She did understand the situation, just as well as I did. But she still took those oaths, she was still serious about them, deadly serious, and there is nothing so dangerous as an enemy who leaves themselves so few limitations. Everyone looks at the Three Oaths the Paladins live by and thinks, 'Oh gods, how restrictive, how can they ever do that', especially on top of what became the Paladin Creed. But those oaths are the only limitations the Paladins function under, the only lines they won't cross. There's all sorts of room in those oaths for some truly terrifying leaps of logic and the Paladins have proven to be remarkably ruthless. They will go right to the limit of their oaths, if the situation calls for it. Sims and Caeghlin didn't kill anyone when they destroyed Willan's Olympus Mons facility, but the crater that used to be a volcano is still visible from Homeworld with an amateur's telescope._

_ "And to this day, I thank the gods for Sims and her childish oaths. Sims demonstrated, in her absolute refusal to violate those oaths, that she was more than a barbarian. Her Paladins' refusal to violate those oaths have done more to enforce the peace than any treaty or army. The Paladins, in the end, were what convinced the Bureau to back off, convinced the Revenants to pack it in, convinced the Conclave that victory did not have to cost billions of lives._

_ "There aren't very many of them, and there never will be. Their power – magical, legal, and social – justifiably makes a lot of people, myself included, very nervous. But the Paladins provide a sort of brutal and incorruptible honesty that the Empire needs to keep the old Terran loyalties from flaring up into outright rebellion, and to keep our own factions from going too far. I would never want to go through what it takes to become one, never want to put up with what they do, going from one emergency to another, but thank the gods for the Paladins. Without them, the Empire would have gone down in flames a hundred times over."_

- Szash Freisan, General of the Armies of Terra, as quoted in a live-broadcast interview on Founding Day, Year Thirty.

00000

Tombadgerlock: Glad you liked it. I'm not a fan of downer-endings, so while it probably won't be as happy as the traditional Nanoha ending, it won't be depressing.

MaZe-Pallas: In a perfect world, sure, a couple rousing speeches by Noriko to convince the Diet and populace at large would have been nice. But remember, in times of crises people tend to do one of two things – become more conservative (and less likely to make radical changes to their government) or, more usually, they become out-right revolutionary (thus overthrowing the entire government). Still, the real problem with 'convincing the Diet to amend the Constitution' is complexity. The Japanese Constitution has been in place since the Forties – and it's _never_ been amended, not even close. The process to do so is also time-intensive – the Diet has to approve the amendment, then it is sent to the prefectures for ratification, and no matter how fast people want to move such a vote, setting up a vote among tens of millions of people takes time. The only way it could have been done in a timeframe reasonable to the situation (i.e. – World War III) would be the complete overthrow of the Constitution – or a legal trick such as the one used. It's not a question of drama or appropriateness, it's a question of time – Noriko and the Prime Minister could not afford the risk of a drawn out political fight when faced with Al Hanthis' imminent threat.

Kell Shock: Szash's plan is less 'piss off everyone' than 'hit certain critical centers and generate so much confusion and paranoia that no one will have the time, organization, or resources to effectively oppose Al Hanthis'. Look at the cities she has attacked and plans to attack, outside of direct conquest attempts – only one (London) is a capitol, and that was not her first target. Admittedly, in areas where she's trying for conquest, she hits capitol cities hard, but those are invariably smaller affairs than the big obvious attacks. The American and British responses will be… less than subtle, but pretty much par for the course for both nations' cultures. As far as teleporting through the Void being insane – keep in mind who came up with it. Back when he was a Bureau Enforcer & cooked up that teleport, Takashi was not so much 'insane' as 'test-pilot brave', willing to take risks for enough advantage (such as arriving totally un-announced). I will admit to stealing the 'legally declared male' trick from a reference in David Weber (though he never used it as a plot-point, that I know of), but I thought it an amusing and interesting way out of the dilemma. As for Yerun letting Akalé continue speaking, it was a matter of practicality. Al Hanthis, in an effort to minimize garrison requirements, is pursuing an approach to the conquered territories of utilizing as much of the existing power structure as possible, both to simplify their own command structure and to minimize resistance. If Yerun had turned to violence to get rid of Akalé, especially right then, it could very easily have set off the very uprisings it's his mission to prevent. There'll be more on Yerun and his fellows – and their predicament – in the next chapter or so as backdrop. Remember, just because Szash is bloody-minded and Yosho has no scruples does not mean everyone in Al Hanthis is a warmonger.

CrimsonDX: Glad you're still reading, and apparently still enjoying this. Thanks for the review!

hignum: As I mentioned to Tombadgerlock, I don't care for downer endings, so while I won't guarantee a 100% survival rate, it won't be bad. I have not yet nailed down all the details of the end, but nothing that is still 'in planning' will break too badly.

Rathmun: Noriko's situation is sticky in pretty much every sense of the term, though the whole legal gender confusion is the most embarrassing bit. The issue of what she does when her friends head off to defend New York and/or London, or wherever Hayate decides to stand, is also going to be difficult. As for Noriko's original uses of Deva magic – where Hayate had no preparation or expectations of the style, Noriko has been studying it for over a year at this point. She may not have been able to practice anything, and did not have a prepared spell-list, but she knew, generally, what to do. Also, remember her comment to Laura when she teleported them to the Kyoto palace – she knew she was not teleporting correctly. Laura has been teleported by Hayate without any difficulties, but Noriko's teleport was actively sickening for her. No problem on the late question, it's honestly one of those things that I reasoned out then tagged as 'obvious' and so didn't bother to explain. My apologies.

Nijiru: I do lurk, usually in shadowed corners:). The question is where and when, and I'm not sociable enough to lurk in new and strange places when I've got old and familiar haunts (as well as less and less time, though that's recent – stories, two RPG campaigns, work, etc, etc, ad nauseum…). With the 'Queen Elizabeth' reference, I originally intended to just leave the Joan of Arc comparison, but it did not quite fit. QE1 fits perfectly, though, at least as much as any historical figure can. As for Gilluame, I'll admit that I worked him and Didier out more in their Side Story 'Scar the Soul', but once I'd written that, given where Al Hanthis conquered first, he was too obvious not to use. Someone in that position, with his outlook, who has based his own redemption on the likes of Gandhi, would not have been able to sit aside for Al Hanthis. Yerun and Al Hanthis will have a way around it, but how well it will work (and how well the rest of the Côte d'Ivoire's people can live up to Guillaume's example) is going to be interesting.

Templar Prime: Thanks for the compliment. With the future references, I've tried to be extremely careful in all of them not to give away too much, especially not genders, unless the reference is obvious – 'the Desert Knight and his Myrmidons', for instance. It's part and parcel of the mystery of the future quotes and trying to keep them from revealing too much, while still giving a sense of just how momentous the events of the story are supposed to be. As for Maunder's age, she's somewhere in her lower forties. For her, a good solider can make squad sergeant in a few years, and progress up the sergeant ranks from there. Figure she signed up right out of high school (18) and was platoon sergeant when she was in her mid to late twenties. Figure a first-lieutenant in his first command, fresh from West Point (or ROTC at another college) would be 22 or 23. With the right connections, and if he's good at his job (not necessarily spectacular, but good), said 1st-louie could reach light-colonel (1st-louie, 2nd-louie, captain, major, lt-colonel) in ten to twelve years, so in his mid thirties (though he would be young for the post). Figure, for proper ages, fifteen years. He'd be 37-38, Maunders would then be in her early forties. Hughes is in his late fifties or so, and was being half-sarcastic. As for Maunders having grey hairs, I'm not prepared to comment, as you never speak of such things where a lady can hear you – especially not if she's as well trained with various infantry weapons as Maunders is.

A006: Japan has actually had female emperors in the past, but only a couple, and with the Meiji Restoration the inheritance was codified to be male children only. The only reason Noriko is getting away with it is the extraordinary circumstances (there's literally no one else), and her tapping into the emotions of the moment so successfully and taking Japan in the direction the people want to go. I thought about trying to come up with an appropriate 'reign name' for Noriko, but I could not make heads or tails of the system (if any) the Japanese use for the princes and the Emperor.

AluciusDawn: The mutual enemy issue is recurrent throughout history, an inescapable part of being human. It's one of the things which makes life so interesting, and drama so powerful (or it's what allows drama to exist at all, in some interpretations). Szash does have a plan, and given what she's got to work with (in terms of information, as much as resources), it's a good plan. Question is, is the plan good enough, and what will the counter-plan be? With Noriko, the one 'good' thing about her predicament is it gives her a distraction, something to do other than grieve. She'll have to deal with her grief eventually, but with Al Hanthis and Laura around, she won't have to deal with _just_ that, and thus be overwhelmed by it. While I've never experienced anything on the scale of what I'm putting her through, it's been my experience that, when things get overwhelming, so long as there's more than one 'thing', you can take turns focusing on one or another as a sort of break. The Terran mages have a couple surprises left for Al Hanthis, though I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with Shaman Ndebele, as he was intended more as an antagonist for Juliet and the Circles than for Al Hanthis. We'll see.

Alpha Draconis1: Guillaume Akale is Didier's father, and they are from le Côte D'Ivoire. The 'hard won sovereignty' he was referencing was the fact that, in the real world, that country is currently trying to negotiate an end to a civil war, which would put it about a decade in the past of this story. Sorry for the confusion, I've posted a correction to the chapter to clear it up.

FabienLeLez: The only problem with your argument about Japan not surrendering its sovereignty to Noriko is, are you sure she would be doing it in her persona as Emperor of Japan? I can tell you right now, China would never yield to the Emperor of Japan, and the US would have issues with it as well, unless things were completely and utterly fraked. But what if Noriko was operating in a new persona? Remember, one person can fill several roles (like with a 'president and CEO' of a company – the positions are usually conflated, but not necessarily, or with the US Vice President, who is also the President of the Senate). Or Noriko could be seized upon by Al Hanthis as a figurehead, someone to give the Terrans a semblance of input and authority under Al Hanthis' rule. In all honesty, I'm actually rather partial to the idea of Yosho or Szash as Emperor (though I've already ruled out Szash with a future quote, so…). Both would be wonderfully terrible at it. Al Hanthis is a tough enemy, as much because the heart of their strength is essentially invulnerable right now, but they are not unstoppable, so… read on to find out:). Regarding your PM, Verner is calm and composed, and for all its bombast, so is Ride of the Valkyries – listen to it closely, and for all its thunder, it's actually not fast-paced, and maintains a steady rhythm throughout. With Nanoha's last name, I picked up the original spelling I used from the first round of fan-subs, and the Scrya/Takamachi confusion was essentially stupidity on my part (which I actually need to go back and fix…). Assume for purposes of covering my errors that when they got married, Yuuno either 'followed his own people's traditions' or 'bowed to Nanoha's fame' and took his wife's last name. The Shaman's confusion about Juliet was quite deliberate – it shows that for all his knowledge and ability to sense and track Hayate, he is not omniscient. Basically, he was so sure he could track Hayate that he forgot she had the Wolkenritter, whom he could not track nearly as easily. The Shaman missed the two that made the offer to and picked up Juliet, because he was distracted by Hayate.


	36. 35 Making Connections

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-35 – Making Connections-

The explosion rocked the Yagami Academy early one Saturday morning two weeks after the coronation. It was not terrible, as such events go, a single sharp jolt followed by lesser rumbles and a wailing fire alarm. The classroom building where the blast occurred barely even shook, though smoke began pouring out of the main staircase soon after. The response to the blast was rather more dramatic, and for all its improvisation, quite skilled.

In the dormitory, Marcel, Juliet and Luke had the Kobayashis and about half the first years in the kitchen and under two layers of shields in under thirty seconds. The Volunteers and other second years checked in there in a rush, then piled outside. They took to the air, remaining over the dorm while looking for the attack. Despite Juliet's vociferous desire to get outside and 'help' as well, she stayed with Marcel and Luke, and despite some particularly vocal protests from Mercedes, the first years were kept safely in the kitchen.

In the library, the rest of the first years soon found themselves herded into the basement, covered by Ichigo, Toushiro, Megan and a pair of Volunteers. Everyone else, as in the dorms, went outside and airborne with alacrity. Little more than two minutes after the blast occurred, almost every mage in the school was either airborne with shields and busters ready, or dug in hard.

Hayate had been in her office, talking with Vita and Fate about training devices for the first years, as insurance for most of them and because the twins had pushed ahead with their devices. Given the position of her office, the three of them were the last ones out of the Library, and just about to take to the air when Tai-yu's first report reached them.

_'It was Workroom Four,' _Tai-yu said, _'massive power flux, then the shields collapsed under some sort of blast. The recorders are unstable due to the blast. Nanoha and Laura were in there! They were training, pointers for Laura's class, I think.'_

Hayate's headlong rush out the door slowed and she asked, verbally and mentally, "Nanoha and Laura? Working on something _together_? _Alone_ together?" Fate and Vita halted just past her, turning to look at her. Fate's expression became faintly amused, while Vita's became a study in cynical expectation – aimed at Fate.

_'Um, yes, ma'am,'_ Tai-yu replied. _'You don't sound worried?'_

Hayate sighed, and fixed Fate with an almost glare. "I should have known _one_ of you was going to do this."

"But it wasn't me," Fate replied, grinning slightly. "Those two… probably challenged each other to see who could make the bigger boom."

"No, Laura challenged Nanoha," Vita countered. "Not even Nanoha's crazy enough to do something like this right now."

Hayate shook her head, still grinning, and broadcast, _'Excellent response, everyone, but we can all relax. It appears to have been a training mishap. Signum, if you could please join me at Workroom Four to collect your apprentice, I would appreciate it.'_

Signum joined them as they approached the main door to the classroom building, landing and falling into step at Hayate's shoulder. Everyone who had taken to the air was following along in a more desultory fashion, with the first years and those who had secured them coming along last, as curiosity overrode interrupted work.

Vita was just about to open the door when it opened for her, letting out a billow of smoke and two figures. It was hard to tell, at first, if they were coughing or laughing, but they were plainly leaning on each other as much as walking on their own. They were both rather disheveled, their barrier jackets scorched and beaten, and they generally looked like they had been on the wrong end of heavy fire.

"Nanoha-chan," Hayate said, pausing as she studied her friend and student. "Did something happen?"

Nanoha looked at her and gave her a guilty grin, "Ah… heh-heh, sorry about this, Hayate-chan. It was an accident?"

Vita snorted disbelievingly, but Hayate just cocked an eyebrow and asked, "What sort of 'accident', Nanoha-chan?"

"Ummmm…"

Laura interrupted, "Ah, sorry, Hayate-sensei, it was my fault. I talked her into sparring with me, then got her to show me Starlight Breaker, and figured out a way to fake it… well, kinda-sorta. Things sort of went 'boom' after that."

Hayate blanched slightly at the thought of Laura, with her utter fearlessness and sometimes-lacking sense of proportion having access to the Starlight Breaker, and Nanoha's guilty chuckle did not help. "Ah, it wasn't that bad, Hayate-chan," Nanoha said. "She doesn't really have it, not yet…"

"I will soon!"

"… but she countered a Breaker with a… whatever that was, instead of the dodge I expected, and they resonated with the shields, so…" Nanoha shrugged guiltily, "you know how it goes."

Signum, checking Laura over while dusting her off, asked, "Why are you learning the Starlight Breaker?"

"Because of Bolt From the Blue," Laura answered immediately. "It wastes most of each cartridge's energy, even the newer drones don't get much past thirty percent power on the target. That's worth it, if I can get a lot of them on-target at the same time, and it's almost worth it for the off-angle and surprise attacks it gives me, but it leaves a lot of energy loose. That much energy… after China, I don't dare use more than one or two drones within a few seconds. Too much loose energy will find things to do on its own, and that usually causes a dimensional instability. Starlight Breaker's gathering effect, which is all I'm really interested in from it, will let me put that energy to use, instead of leaving it loose, and that'll let me get more use out of the Bolt Drones. Besides, my version's an area attack, not a buster spell."

"You'll show me," Signum told her, "both of you will. After both of you help me finish replacing the shields and dimensional-warping spells you just destroyed. Hayate-sama?"

Hayate shook her head, unable to keep from grinning. The situation hardly needed such surprises, but it was so like Nanoha and Laura go overboard… "Go ahead, Signum. And you two," she tried, honestly tried, to glare at Nanoha and Laura, "are not allowed in a workroom together without some adult supervision." She pointed sideways, "You don't count, Fate-chan. I remember who is usually with Nanoha when she does something like this. Go ahead."

00000

Maunders, not even on the campus for ten minutes, was just close enough to the classroom building to listen to the conversation directly, standing behind a cluster of the kids. Remembering some of the reports regarding the 'workrooms' that had circulated the year before, and the answers to some of her question in the time since March, she stared at the two culprits with a mixture of awe and fear.

Morris, the Volunteer who had met her and the other Circle representatives at the overlook, noticed the look and grinned at her. "Impressive, for a kid, but not really surprising, given who her teachers are and who she was training with." He laughed a little, "The maintenance crews back at the Bureau had a nickname for Takamachi and Testarossa – Slayers of Workrooms. Or worse, if they thought there weren't any officers around. Those two have a bad habit of doing that."

"If you're trying to be reassuring, you're failing," Maunders muttered back, watching a teenage kid, a twenty-something girl, and Signum head back into the building. She fingered Pershing where it was hooked under her belt, and shook her head, "not reassuring at all."

"Excuse me, Sergeant Maunders?"

She turned to find one of Hayate's students – the Arab boy Yussef, and his shadow, Marcel – standing to one side, watching her. "Yes?"

Yussef stepped closer, to easy speaking distance, and said, "I realize you just got here, Sergeant, but I was wondering if I could borrow some of your free time this weekend? I wanted to ask you some questions about Circle capabilities, especially the Black Dogs."

Maunders frowned at him, wondering if he was really that stupid. "I'm not Sandoval," she replied slowly. "You want to know how to fight us, you learn it the hard way."

Yussef just smiled back at her slightly. It was a surprisingly unfriendly expression. "I already know how to fight the Circles, Sergeant. I learned in February. I'm looking information to plan how to work around and _use_ the Circles, the Black Dogs, and even conventional military forces, all of which you," he gestured towards her, "are quite familiar with."

That made more sense, though Maunders was not about to trust him. He was a kid, but had proven himself in New Delhi to be as underhanded as he needed to be. "Your teachers would be better to ask. They're running your tactics, after all."

"No, actually, they're not," Yussef shook his head. "My Myrmidons are just that, Maunders – mine. Zafira-sensei keeps an eye on us, but our tactics and skills are our own. I realize you will probably be uncomfortable with helping 'the enemy', but at the moment Al Hanthis is a bigger threat, and any information you can give me can only make our efforts more effective. Believe me, I'm not exactly happy to be asking a Circle mage for help – I'm not even sure I trust Tai-yu-sensei, to be honest – but you're a damn sight more trustworthy than Takashi."

"Besides," Marcel added, "you have to realize that, even without Al Hanthis, the only way you were ever going to stand up to Hayate-sensei and us was by becoming us. You proved it yourself at Hong Kong, after all."

Maunders snapped her eyes to him, glaring at him, but did not find the gloating superiority she expected. He was just watching her, face flat save for one slightly raised eyebrow. "I proved at Hong Kong that these devices of yours are just as dangerous as we've always feared." She turned back to Yussef, considering him for a few moments. He was remarkably steady under that gaze, far more confident than most lieutenants she could remember. "You realize how ridiculous the idea of a fifteen year old force commander is?"

Yussef shrugged, "Alexander the Great. Gustavus Adolphus. One King Louis of France, though I forget which of the many. There have been other successful commanders my age throughout history, though I'm not particularly interested in conquest," his smile shifted to a grin he shared with Marcel, "it's not worth the extra attention from the ditz."

When he turned back, his face was serious once more, "I have no delusions of genius, Maunders. I know I'm young, I know I'm not fully trained, and I fully intend to get that training – when we have time. My father and I have been talking over military schools for years – he wants me to go to your own West Point, I prefer Sandhurst. Unfortunately, either one is several years away, and we have a war on us now. A war that, thanks to my device, I am one of the primary soldiers in. As Laura is so obsessed over, I have this power, I can't stand back and not use it. Of all the students here, I'm the best equipped to lead in battle, and that requires that I lead well, which includes asking people I don't quite trust for any information they can give me that will let me do my job better. So, can I borrow some of your time this weekend?"

Maunders did not care for his arguments – they were entirely too reasonable and mature for someone that young. But he was also right, she had to admit, at least in general terms. "Yeah, sure, kid," she said, "probably tomorrow. Where'll I find you when I'm free?"

"The Library or workroom five," he answered, "thank you, Sergeant, I really do appreciate it."

He turned and marched off, following most of the other first years into the workroom building – no doubt all of them were equally curious as to what, precisely, their classmate had done to cause the morning's excitement. His shadow followed him just as faithfully, and Maunders frowned again. "Those kids are way too old for their age."

Morris snorted, "With Hayate-san as their teacher? She picked them for that, as much as for anything, and trained them for it. I seriously doubt any of her kids would ever have been 'normal', Maunders-san. At least here they've got a chance to shine."

He paused, rubbing his chin, "I'll tell you this, though. Al Khan's not a genius, by most measures. He's smart, sure, but not 'genius'. But he's got that touch, the charisma and intuition, a good combat leader needs. Whatever he does, people are going to follow him. Good instincts. For now, though, Hayate-san asked me to bring you to her once you arrive. Shall we?"

00000

As Hidan expected, given the recent traumas and precarious situation, being away from the Yagami Academy made him uncomfortable, nervous. The distance involved required him to trust Noriko's protection to others, and he was all too aware of how weak those protections potentially were. The magical protections at the Academy were strong, certainly, but there were other threats, other responsibilities, and Noriko would not always be behind those protections. Hidan had a severe shortage of people he trusted to handle those responsibilities who were also willing to shoulder them, and he was very worried that they would not be enough.

But his current mission was critical, not to Noriko's immediate security, but to her long-term protection, to the protection of the entire Family line, now. He had to either trust others to watch over her for a day, or trust others with this, and he decided, based on his personal history with the candidate, to present the offer himself. He would just have to trust that Hayate could keep Noriko on campus until he got back, where she was as safe as humanly possible.

The shop had an antique bell suspended over the door, instead of one of the newer motion-sensor tones. Between the sound, the gentle dark woods of the interior, and the scents, it made him feel surprisingly welcome and comfortable, tranquil. Very privately, silently, he apologized to those he was here to speak to, for disturbing that tranquility.

A middle-aged woman stood behind the counter working a cash register, while a teenager was packaging pastries for a customer. The woman at the register smiled and welcomed him politely enough, but Hidan could see a shadow in her eyes, distrust and fear, though not much of either. She plainly recognized his 'type', if not him personally. Hidan nodded in response to the greeting, then waited for the customer to depart.

Stepping up to the counter, Hidan said, "My apologies, ma'am, but I was given to understand your husband is here? I need to speak with him."

The fear and distrust returned, but she covered it well. "May I tell him who is here?"

Another voice interrupted him, from the door to the kitchen. "Hidan?"

Looking up, Hidan found the man he was here for, looking rather incongruous in a flour-spattered apron. He could not help grinning slightly, "Hello, Takamachi-sempai. I see you finally learned to relax." It had become an old joke between the two of them – he had always found Takamachi Shiro's relaxed attitude aggravating, and Shiro had always told him that if he did not relax, he would be too tense to be properly aware of his surroundings.

Shiro's face clouded over. "Hidan," he repeated, then shook his head, "I'm retired, Hidan. I know what you're here for, but I already declined when your people called."

"I know that, sempai," Hidan replied, "but I can't afford to take no for an answer. Not on this, not right now. At least hear me out? For old times' sake?"

Shiro started to object, then looked to his wife. She gave him a sad smile, and made a resigned little 'shoo' gesture towards one of the tables. He matched her smile, then gestured for Hidan to precede him. "For old times' sake, Hidan. Have a seat."

They settled in, and a moment later Momoko set a cup in front of each of them, silently pouring the tea herself. Before Hidan could begin, Shiro asked, "How bad is it, really?"

Hidan grimaced. "That depends on who you ask. The Household Ministry thinks the world has already ended, but that is simply because Noriko is completely ignoring them. She unofficially informed the Prime Minister that the current Household Ministry's staff is 'unacceptable', and he's looking for replacements. She was never happy with their treatment of her aunt, and will not subject herself to the same.

"For Noriko, this has been terrible, but she has not had time to fully come to terms with that, yet. Her only living relative now is basically her uncle's wife, who is… not handling it as well. Noriko has effectively lost her entire family, and while Hayate and her teachers are stepping into the gap, they are not the same. Not yet, not this soon.

"For myself… I believe it is bad, very bad, but not lost. She has the will, she has the strength. What she needs is time, support, and safety. She'll never have enough of the first, she's got the second in spades, and I'm responsible for getting her the third. For which I need you."

Shiro shook his head, "I understand that you want the best people you can find protecting her, but I am retired, Hidan. I promised my family. Though… you could ask Kyoya and Miyuki, they're on a contract in Germany at the moment."

"Which ends in three to four weeks, at which time they have already agreed to return to Japan and join the Emperor's detail," Hidan replied with a small smile. "I even asked your youngest, though she declined. Understandably, she'll be more useful to the war effort as a direct combatant, but I am looking for the best, and all your children qualify for that.

"You seem be misunderstanding something, though, sempai. While I will admit I would prefer for you to actively protect Noriko, I knew before I had anyone call you that you would not accept such a position. No, sempai, I'm asking you to do for Noriko's guard what you did for me and for your own children – teach, train, make them the best they possibly can be. I can find people I can trust, and I can find people who have the skills for the job, but the number of people with both?" Hidan shook his head, "the number is vanishingly small. There are not enough, not now, when the entire Family resides in Noriko alone. Even fewer of that rare number are willing to shoulder the burdens and risks.

"Since it is harder to come to trust people than it is to train them, I have been selecting on that basis. That still leaves the requirement for getting those people the skills they need, which requires a _teacher_ I can trust. I know any number of teachers in the various skills, and have approached several already. But you, sempai, are the only person I trust who can teach the complete package. People I can find, even unquestionably loyal people. But I need someone to teach them to _be_ guards, and you are the best person I know for that role. That is the job I am offering you sempai. Not bodyguard, but instructor."

Shiro stared at him for a few seconds, cup halfway back to the table. Then he blinked, set the cup gently down, and smiled slightly. "You've grown up Hidan. I'm impressed. Back then, you would have gone on and on about duty and responsibility and honor."

Hidan shrugged, "Back then I was a twenty-year-old kid who thought one semi-useful immunity made him unbeatable. These days I have a fourteen year old girl to protect, one who is trying to carry the entire world on her shoulders. She is handling it incredibly well, but needs all the help she can get. The Emperor gave me charge of her safety, and…" he shrugged. He always had trouble explaining his loyalty to the Imperial Family to others, it always felt uncomfortably presumptuous of him, as well as boastful.

Shiro smiled at that, "Oh, I understand that part very well, Hidan. I'm glad she has someone like you to watch over her. But even just a teaching position… I will have to speak with Momoko about it, think it over. I will need a few days."

"Days I can give you, sempai. For the moment, Noriko is safely ensconced at the Yagami Academy. I pity anyone foolish enough to try and harm her there. Even the gods would not prevail against those people."

"Hmm, I know all of Nanoha's friends at the school, so that is not surprising," Shiro agreed. "But, since you're here, tell me what you've been up to, Hidan. When we parted company, you had just accepted a position protecting a college kid, as I recall. The Emperor's nephew?"

00000

Turo looked up and grinned as someone slumped into the chair across the small table from him. The woman sighed heavily as she slumped across the back of the chair, dramatically draped an arm over her forehead. "Slay me now," she sang out, "I'm too tired to care."

That drew a chuckle from Turo, and he replied, "I would Kirie, but I'm swamped with paperwork as it is. The forms required to execute a Protector would bury me, and then who would get the Lord Protector his tea?"

Journeywoman Protector Kirie snorted once, then gave up the pose and rolled herself upright, shifting to a more comfortable and traditional position in the seat. "You don't get him tea, you run other errands for him, Turo. How's that working out for you? Being that close to power… gotta be heady. And all because of a lucky bit of timing on a boring shift on perimeter watch."

Kirie was a long time friend – they had finished their education in the same year, gone right into the Protectors together, and she had beaten him to Journeyman by about a week, a happenstance of scheduling that they still argued seniority over, in a friendly fashion. She was also an inveterate gossip and loved rumors, mostly those about her friends, since it gave her ammunition to tease them with, which she was patently fishing for.

Turo shrugged, "It's actually scary, sometimes. Some of the things he has to deal with, for the Conclave and the war, are downright terrifying. That first meeting with Yagami, for instance – the woman's impressive, but she's so cavalier about warping and ripping the fabric of reality. Then there's the take-over of the local territory, co-opting and replacing the local governments, so on and so on." He carefully did not mention the Blood Penance, he was too conflicted about it. On the one hand, he thought Willan might have been able to get the information the ritual needed from local sources, similar to how Kriegsen had delivered it to the Lord Protector. But that was such a small possibility, almost too small to calculate, that Turo was unhappily certain where the information had come from. Given how her people were closing ranks and practically assaulting people in their search for the perpetrators, there was no way Szash had given Willan the information – she would have hated even the suggestion of going after civilians.

"Speaking of the war," Kirie said, "you got any info you're not sharing about the locals' ability to force access to our computer systems? We had a subtle knife the other day that's being really, really cagey."

Turo blinked, "A subtle knife? A military hack? On who?"

Kirie shook her head, "Not a who, so much as a 'what'. Someone cracked the external comms, took control of the custom relays we set up to break into the locals' satellite networks. We traced where they called – some school in the islands out east… Yapen, or something? – but couldn't back-trace them. Ingenious set-up, they used a banking kiosk on a platform off Rulio Tower as input, reprogrammed it somehow from inside to function as a relay, then hit its optical receptor with a modulated laser. That was all their incoming commands and data, everything they ran on the system. All the output was routed to the nav beacons on Scyra Tower, altering the blink patterns to code the data stream."

Turo frowned, confused, "those towers are on opposite ends of the city, opposites _sides_, too. How were they coordinating?"

Kirie shrugged, "An optical receiver to pick up the signals from Scyra Tower could collate the data back into a digital stream, which could then be quietly routed wherever the intruder was working from. Same for the input to Rulio Tower, even easier, just send the data stream to one of the communications relay lasers and re-aim it from its receivers to the banking kiosk. Like I said, really cagey. So, anything?"

Turo shook his head, thinking it over. "Nothing from our end, but… there's a Guard Master, Haen. He's in the Five-Oh-First, was at Hong Kong, and I think he got hit by a subtle knife. I don't have full details, though. You know how the Guard gets when one of their own is injured. But that's the kind of thing you're talking about. Anyone who could get far enough into a Guard mage's implants, in the middle of a fully monitored assault, has to be 'really cagey'. Contact… Adept Galli, I think, formally, and request information from the Guard regarding the subtle knife at Hong Kong. Don't play any games with him, not like normal. If we've got an intruder inside the city, and they're good enough to access external comms like this…" he trailed off with a shudder.

"Yeah, don't have to tell me twice," Kirie grimaced. "First thing Master Uria thought of when this happened was some loony local getting access to one of the near-terminal power plants. The power plants are touchy enough when they're new, when they're winding down and the fracture's starting to collapse?" She shuddered as well, "Boom. Big time boom."

"That, at least, I wouldn't worry about," Turo said. Kirie gave him a questioning look, and he shook his head, "Can't tell you how, but we've got some info on the locals – the important ones, at least. They're the ones most like to both get an intruder in the city and force access like you're talking about, or like what happened over Hong Kong. They won't go after the generators, or any of the fixed weapons or the lifting engines. They're too worried about uncontrolled fractures to do that. No, they'll go for the _shields_, Kirie. Bring the city's shields down, and Al Hanthis is just a target. Even if we got all the civilians into the shelters – and you know how likely _that_ is to happen – the city itself would still be utterly vulnerable.

"Contact Galli. Give him whatever he wants to get what the Guard has on the subtle knife. I'll talk to the Lord Protector about authorizing it, and about increasing security around the shields and their controls. Maybe we can isolate the shield controls from the city grid somehow, or something."

Kirie grinned at him, "Wow, listen to you, junior, giving orders like you're my boss or something." Turo started, but she waved it aside, grin shifting oddly, "Relax, Turo. I'm just surprised is all. You didn't used to be this confident. I like it. I'll be back in a minute, once I get some food, but won't have much time. I've apparently got a dastardly spy to catch, and you've got me worried, now."

Turo watched her go, trying to figure out what that speech had been about. He was not especially confident, he knew that, it was just obvious what needed to be done. The smile she had given him was equally strange, not a look he had ever seen on her face before. After a few seconds, he shook the concerns off. There were more important things to do than figuring out how his crazy friend's mind worked. He already knew he was going to have nightmares about some local intruder getting access to the shields' controls.

He called up a comm. screen keyed to the Lord Protector's office. Adept Alinz's face appeared after a moment, initially blank, but breaking into a friendly smile. "Ah, Journeyman Turo. How can I help you?"

"I was wondering if I might speak with the Lord Protector at some point today, Adept," Turo replied. Normally, such a request from anyone below Master rank would take days just to get to Alinz's desk, let alone generate a response. But Turo was fully aware of his increasingly unique position in the Protectors, and willing to take advantage of it. "Journeywoman Kirie just brought something to my attention with some troubling implications – we may have an intruder or traitor in the city."

00000

The edge of Al Hanthis' core platform was ringed, on its upper level, by a narrow ribbon of park. None of the wide-growing shade trees used elsewhere, but plenty of low bushes and flowers in artfully arranged beds amidst the grass, with benches placed to look out past the safety barriers. It had, in the weeks since the city returned to Homeworld, become one of the most popular places in the city, at all hours. Even the tan sameness of Egypt's desert had been a popular sight to people who had spent so long in the deadly darkness of the Void. Now that the city was floating over Cairo, it was even more popular.

Natalia hated it. She hated the view of drab and dreary Cairo. She hated the heat of the desert sun, the stench of the city she could smell even at altitude, the never-ending wind. Mostly, she hated having to walk through the endless crowds with her eye-patch in her pocket.

Ahmu insisted, however. He claimed the patch was disturbing, a sign of deception and mistrust. Natalia just thought he despised her and wanted her to suffer, a sentiment she sometimes agreed with, though not usually when he made her take the eye-patch off.

On the good side, she had found that her vision did have a range limit, of sorts. The further away from her someone (and, increasingly, some_thing_) was, the less distinct her vision of its ending. On these twice-a-week walking lessons Ahmu insisted on, she could look out and, at the edges of Cairo, see just normal people, not walking dead. On the down side, she could look down on the local areas, just under the city, and still see clearly enough, if she focused. She did not even need to focus to see the fates of those walking the park with her, with a few exceptions she carefully noted.

At the least, Ahmu's interest in her device meant she could carry Koschei openly. It did mark her out as strange, she was the only one carrying any sort of implement, and she thought most of Al Hanthis' citizens could tell it was a mage-engine, as Ahmu called it. But it was comforting, familiar, hers. Koschei had surrendered to her will, he would never betray her.

"Have you figured it out yet?"

Ahmu's question jolted Natalia out of her staring contest with the horizon. "I'm sorry?" That was one of the inconsistencies she had noticed. Yosho was fairly formal, the few Guard mages she had encountered were coldly precise in their formalities, but Ahmu… wasn't. The old man never used titles, only used her given name, when he used any pronouns, and half the time seemed to be laughing at something.

Like he was now – a huge smile blossomed on his face at her confused half-question. "Have you figured out why I keep dragging you out here when it is so manifestly unpleasant for you? By some standards, I could be justifiably accused of torturing you."

Natalia had not even thought there was a purpose. Most of their walks were spent discussing the Void, how one went about scrying through it into the past or the future. She had little trouble with the latter, but for some reason had great difficulty scrying into the past, and Ahmu seemed intensely amused by that difficulty. Those discussions had been engaging enough that she had not thought beyond them. She thought about trying to guess, but covering up her own ignorance was one of the few things that seemed to annoy her new teacher. "I have not thought on it."

Ahmu nodded, "Unfortunate, but typical for those your age. You should have years more of apprenticeship before you tested for even first rank journeyman, yet Yosho has given you Adept rank, based solely on raw power. There is more to the rank than power, though. Come, to the rail, you will be less distracted trying not to see people." He walked over to the edge, leaning on the physical safety-rail a half-meter inside the transparent safety-shield, and Natalia joined him.

"I have three purposes in conducting our walks here. The first is simply to get you used to us, and us used to you. You are a strange looking child even without your eye, and you make people nervous by your mere appearance, let alone what little they have heard of you. These walks allow them to see you in a calm setting, relatively controlled, and quite obviously being watched. It also gives you a chance to see that we are not all power-mad manipulators like Yosho, or violence-junkies like young Szash." He paused, chuckling slightly, "I still remember her as a little girl. She was an absolute terror of a child, always into everything. None of the applicable pasts show her as anything else, which is quite a rarity.

"The second and third purposes are more personal, and interrelated. Walking amongst so many people, forced to look upon them with your blessed eye, forces you to use it. You have been trying to escape and avoid it since you acquired it, and that has stunted your development of the relevant skills. These walks both strengthen your gift, and are beginning to force you to control it. I could lecture you until I was blue in the face and you had passed on from boredom, and not teach you as much about controlling your eye as these walks do. Something so intimately bound to you, so personal, cannot be truly explained by another. So, the lessons on Forecasting, which are related to controlling your eye, combined with the practical lessons on controlling that eye. Thus they continue, until you learn to control the eye at an instinctive level."

Natalia grimaced at that and shook her head. "It's made my eye stronger," she admitted, "but I'm not getting any sort of control. It's still there, all the time."

Ahmu laughed, "Ah, but that is not the failure of the lesson, child. That is the failure of the student. You are still too afraid of it, of what it means, what it could mean. So, when we continue our walk, you will cease paying attention to those who are shielded against your sight, and focus on those who are not. You must learn to see through them, without loosing sight of them. Know they are present, but see past them. You say your eye has strengthened. How?"

Natalia shrugged, "Distance, mostly. I can see death further away, across the city now. I can also…" she sighed and shrugged, waving at the buildings below her, "I can see when they are going to crumble to dust."

"Not anytime soon, I hope?"

She shook her head, "A couple are going to be destroyed in the next couple months, a lot more in the next few years, but… the later ones are… demolition, I think, not combat, taken down to make way for new buildings. The more recent ones, I can't tell. Some are violent, but… explosions are explosions." She turned her head, scanning the city below, trying not to see the people, looking for anything else, any sort of pattern. Seeing non-living objects was more difficult, required deliberate focus, but she could manage it.

Her gaze drifted west, off towards where the city, which drifted about over Cairo in an apparently random pattern, was overhanging the desert slightly. A series of thick cables, or tubes, had been strung towards the ground, and she noticed motion at the ends, people moving about. She focused harder, calling on Koschei mentally to layer magnifying lenses over her eyes, and grimaced. "Seed," she hissed. The things made her skin crawl, for all sorts of reasons. Then something caught her eye, and she forced herself to study them. They were harder to see than people, but only slightly.

"Yes, Seed," Ahmu said, "a controversial weapon, but too useful to dispose of or ignore. Personally, I am just as happy to see them put to a reasonable use. Leaving them in stasis is a waste of resources, and if we don't use them, someone else will use something worse."

"They're all going to die," Natalia said, scanning the creatures that were slowly streaming northwest. It was hard, the vision kept fading in and out, and it made her eye throb, but…

"Everything dies," Ahmu said with a grin. "Even me, and I'm reputed to be immortal. Of course, that could be because I've outlived almost everyone I've ever met. Longevity – a frequently missed advantage of being both paranoid and able to read the pasts and futures."

"They're all going to die in a week and a half," Natalia clarified, "by violence. One brief moment of indescribable force, then nothing. Good riddance."

That made Ahmu frown, and he turned to study the Seed for a few minutes, then turned back to Natalia. "You are certain?"

She nodded. "A week and a half – ten, maybe eleven days. They're all going to die in the same moment… no, not all. Some of the ones coming out of the tubes will survive a day or two more, but…" she frowned, aching eye becoming a full-on headache as she tried to draw more information from the visions, "… I think… they'll just be dying slowly."

Ahmu considered that for a few moments, then nodded slowly. "I'll pass the information along to the Guard through channels. For now, though… put your eye-patch back on. We're done for the day, and I don't want you to risk straining whatever your anchor is. You're far too intriguing a puzzle to let you fade away on me now."

Natalia summoned her eye-patch with a relieved thought, relaxing the instant it covered her eye. "If we are finished, Ahmu, I'll be off to see my brother. Healer Faiss may have new information for me." That was the one bright spot of her suffering. The Healers were convinced it was a matter of time, weeks at most, before they could draw Sasha out of his coma. They were already working on his long-dormant body, conducting rehab while his mind would be least-discomfited by it. _It was worth it,_ she reminded herself, _it's all worth it, if it brings him back._

00000

Cidela sighed in frustration as the tugging faded again, then resumed from yet another direction. She had identified it as some aspect of her bond to Hippocrates, but it was very slippery, very hard to hold on to. Every time she thought she had it, it faded out again, then reappeared pulling her in a new direction.

She had no idea how long she had been wandering in this darkness, wherever it was. She had several theories, thoughts from references others had made, but she could not tell. There was none of the draining effect she would have expected from being in the Void, as Kessenra had said she was, but none of the cold or the gates Natalia had described of the edge of death. She did not have any odd aches or memory gaps that she was aware of, other than Hong Kong, so this was not likely to be a head-injury-induced coma, and she had seen too clearly too many people she did not know for this to be a hallucination or dream.

The people were one of the most intriguing parts. They always appeared through more openings such as she had seen Kessenra through. Usually, all Cidela could do was watch for a few seconds, observing, before the pinprick of light faded or retreated. Sometimes, though, she had managed to push her way through. That always resulted in the same situation – her suspended over some highly reflective surface, hazy and see-through and unable to move away from whatever she was standing on. No one she had talked to had known much – most of them had panicked at seeing her. She had found that touching anything living above a microbial level somehow disrupted her presence, and dumped her right back in the blackness.

Another light appeared, and Cidela decided to see where it led. Hopefully, eventually, one such light would take her to someone who could help, or at least explain. So she drifted towards the light, expanding it until she could see through it. This one revealed what looked like a fairly high tech but small mage-lab, a cross between a workroom and Allina's room when she was on one of her on-line rampages. It was occupied by a single woman, not particularly tall, with long brown hair pulled back in a braid, wide round glasses on her face, wearing a long flowing skirt and long light coat in what looked like Bureau colors.

Touching a hand to the image, Cidela tried to will herself through, and abruptly found herself standing atop a tub of water. The woman, chewing on a stylus and utterly focused on a trio of screens, did not even twitch.

"Um, excuse me," Cidela said, trying Japanese first from habit.

The woman grunted, then waved a hand and said in distracted English, "Not now. Conundrum."

Cidela blinked, then frowned. She could understand the focus, but she did not like being ignored any more than the next person, and she was in dire enough straights to be pushy. Switching to English herself, she said, "I am sorry to disturb you, ma'am, but I am in need of some help?"

The woman growled, shot her a glance and said, "I'm busy, come back la… terrr…" The glance was repeated, then turned into a full-on stair, bright blue eyes focusing completely on Cidela. It was an odd experience for the girl, no one had ever stared at her so intensely before. "Well, I suppose I can put aside the mysteries of Al Hazred for a bit in favor of the mysteries of you. Talk about your conundrums. How did you get in here, miss, and why are you standing on a containment pool?"

Cidela blinked, then looked down. Sure enough, whatever the liquid she was standing on was, it was too thick and murky to be water, had an oily reflectivity to it, and deep within she could see… "Are those jewel seeds?"

"Yes, but too pedestrian to be interesting unless I can get the power coupling working to harness them," the woman said, rolling out of her chair and pacing around Cidela. "You aren't actually here, are you? A projection of sorts, which is very interesting, since I haven't bothered figuring out how to do that yet, but you have all the traces of my magic."

Cidela blinked again, frowning in confusion, "Your magic, ma'am?"

The woman wrinkled her nose, "Please don't call me 'ma'am'. I'm not even twenty yet! My _mother_ is 'ma'am'. You can call me Sara."

That name brought recognition, and Cidela gasped in surprise. "Sara Shimazu? The creator of Deva magic? But… you're…" She trailed off, realizing what she had been seeing, where she presently was.

"Shimazu?" Sara started, then glared, "_Shimazu_? Why would you think I'm related to that muscle-brained cretin? Sara Nelson, thank you very much. But that still doesn't explain how you have my magic."

_Nelson? But she's… she matches… oh no, this is the __past__. I've been looking at the past! But… how? And what did she mean, 'her magic'? _ "I… I am sorry, ma… Sara-san. I was confused. I'm not really sure how I got here. But, if you are who I think… I do not use your style of magic. Hayate-sensei is too worried about converting anyone else to a Deva mage, since she has never done it before."

"I should think not," Sara muttered, leaning in close to peer at Cidela's arm, "_I_ haven't 'converted' anyone else, either. Who's this 'Hayate-sensei'? I figured someone else had to have figured out the dimensional shaping as well, I just couldn't find any records, and the head of the Infinity Library doesn't like me." She frowned, turning aside in thought for a moment. "The poor man burst into tears the moment he saw me, last time I tried to do some research there. I honestly think he needs to see a psychologist, eh can't be all there."

Cidela tried to figure out how to both be believable and not reveal too much, and finally just admitted, "Um, I… I know this is going to sound… strange… but… I think I am from your future." Briefly, using as few details as she could, she explained what she knew of her predicament and where she came from – just the blackness, the lights, the tugging, and the existence of a school in Japan.

Sara listened politely, then shrugged, "Well, that's easy enough. You're crossing the null-space. Which is impossible, by the way, you can't do that, especially not with my shaping magic. No one can do what you're doing and live, so you're quite the interesting conundrum. I like conundrums, they keep life interesting. Like the word to, it confuses people." She frowned, "but, I can see you're fading, and we can't have that. I'm not bored yet. Can I run some tests? I won't touch you, and I don't think anything I do will break your connection. If we're lucky, I may even be able to help you figure out how to get home again."

Relief flooded Cidela. She knew almost as well as Noriko just how intelligent Sara was, and the idea of having her help was incredibly reassuring. So she just nodded her head and stood there as Sara began very carefully casting spells. None of them were the diagnostics Okaa-chan used on her, but Cidela could recognize some of them. Hayate had used them occasionally in class. Even stranger, the magic felt odd, not at all like Deva magic normally felt to Cidela, but more… comfortable, background, normal. Then Sara brought out the Sword, and Cidela recognized the feel of Mid-childan magic, normal magic, and realized that Sara was right – somehow, someway, Cidela had become a Deva mage.

It took half an hour for Sara to conduct all the tests and scans she wanted, the longest Cidela had yet spent 'outside' one of those pinpricks of light. For the most part, that was uninterrupted, save for an occasional attention chime from the computer systems. Watching Sara work was an interesting, but being the subject of that work was actually somewhat unpleasant. Sara was utterly focused on her work, not speaking beyond muttering to herself, and totally ignoring any of Cidela's attempts to ask what was going on. On the other hand, Sara had a number of interface screens up, initially one but rapidly increasing to five or six at a time, and she seemed to build a data-base on the fly to collate all the data her scans gathered. Cidela thought that Niranjana and Allina together could manage the database and computer sensors, and Hayate-sensei or Okaa-chan could manage the scans, but she did not know anyone she thought could do all of it at once.

Finally, though, Sara finished her scans and relaxed out of her focused state. "Well, that's very interesting. Did you know your original linker core is both unstable and damaged?"

Cidela flinched a little, "Um, no, not really. Damaged, though?" Okaa-chan had told her about the repeated changes her linker core had gone through, but they had all been increases in strength, none of the fluctuations. None of the teachers had been able to explain it, but no one had said anything about instability.

Sara waved it aside, "Eh, it's healing from that, don't worry about it. As for the instability, it's not actually that uncommon. In most cases, it's a stress-thing. It just means that your linker core will adapt much more rapidly to repeated stress or lack of stress. Linker cores strengthen and weaken with use or neglect, yours just does it faster." Sara blinked, "Well, unless you repeatedly over-stressed it in a very short span of time, in which case it could theoretically deteriorate into a full-blown dislocation, instead of collapsing like most peoples cores would. But! That's not relevant right now and we have far more interesting things to discuss. What is relevant is, the dimensional shaping magic relies on a mirrored linker core, one which reflects your original core, and in your case, that's how you're still alive."

"Wh… what do you mean, still alive?"

Sara shrugged, "Null-space drains mage-energy, although not quite so badly in your case, given how you're stretched across it. Because your linker core – your original one, I should say – is unstable, it's responding to the stresses on it by becoming stronger, which is then reflecting in your shaping core. I've seen a few other people like that – Ta-chan and myself, for instance. But there's an upper bound, and…" Sara paused a moment as the hatch behind her hissed open, then rolled her eyes and said, "I'm busy, Ta-chan, come back later."

Cidela looked past Sara, and for a moment was confused. The very young, somewhat soft-looking young man in an oddly-cut Bureau uniform was vaguely familiar, but there was no way he was Takashi. He was not in black, save for a pair of gloves, he was too soft-looking, and there was no air of menace or threat, no Hellblade slung over his shoulder. He certainly was not Akira, as there was no sense of wrong from him. But the closer she looked, the clearer it became that this was Takashi, however strange he looked.

"If you had answered the Admiral's signal and explained the anomaly we detected, I might consider it, Aoi," Takashi said, striding into the room. He looked Cidela over briefly, then returned to glaring at Sara.

Sara grimaced at the name, but also flushed slightly, then shrugged and continued pouring over her data, "Uncle Wilhelm knows I'm working."

"Which is why he asked me to come down to check before sending in a strike and containment team," Takashi replied. "What's this? You conjure something out of the Jewel Seeds?"

Sara shook her head, "Not really. The Jewels Seeds combined presence just provided a weak-spot in the dimensional wall for her to look through. Do me a favor and try a spell, dear. Just a little one, a light or something."

Cidela needed a second to realize Sara had addressed the last to her, then hesitated. Between the realization that her magic was somehow new, and the strange normalcy of Takashi's presence, she was feeling rather nervous. "Um, Sara-san, I've never tried with… well… Hayate-sensei must have done the conversion after Hong Kong. I'm not sure what happened there."

Sara frowned at her a moment, then relaxed, "Ah, you weren't trained for it. Hmm, I'll have to think of a way to get around that if I ever convert someone myself… since apparently I'm going to. Hmm, well, here, try this…"

The explanation took all of thirty seconds, and then Cidela tried it, bringing light from elsewhere, concentrating it into her hands, and creating a sphere of soft white brightness. Sara watched and studied every motion she made, every trace of magic, nodding along slowly.

Takashi's pensive look became a full-on frown. "You're using Sara's magic," he said after a few seconds. "Damn it, Nelson, you swore you wouldn't…"

"And I didn't, _Ta-chan_," she interrupted. "She's a traveler from else-when, and I'm trying to figure out how to send her home without tearing her to shreds or draining her dry. Now be a good boy and go oppress some innocents somewhere else or something, I'm busy."

Takashi snarled at her, but she did not notice, then turned to Cidela. The look in his eyes was somewhat intimidating, but nowhere near what she as used to from him, even if he was angry at her this time. This version of Takashi was just too cute, compared with the one she was used to, to frighten her, though he was beginning to make her nervous. "You claim to be from the future? How far in the future?"

That question brought a worry to the fore that Cidela had been hoping to ignore. She was in the past, but was what she had done and said already what was supposed to happen, or was she changing things, making them better or worse? What if there was no relationship between Sara and Takashi, because of what Cidela said, or had already said? What if Sara didn't die and Takashi was not bound, who would make Hayate-sensei a Deva mage? Without that, would she create her school, or be strong enough to defend it when the Circles attacked? What if Cidela said something now, that doomed her to never escape her old family and find a new one? "Um… I just… just think it's the future," She tried to temporize.

Takashi's glare became suspicious. "How far, and what are you doing here?"

"I'm trying to get home," Cidela replied, shrinking away from him. If he tried to touch her, or bind her magically, she would end up back in the Void, and probably loose her best chance to ever get home.

"You still haven't answered how long," Takashi insisted.

"I'm lost," Cidela said, "I just want to go home. I don't know what happened to me, or when this is, I just… I want to go home."

"You don't know when you are? So tell me something, give me a clue," Takashi said. "How did Nelson figure out you're from the future? What did you tell her?"

"Takashi," Sara said, "let it go. She's not dangerous, just a kid."

"She accessed the ship through a group of half-contained lost logia, according to the ship's sensors she _is _a standing dimensional instability, and she won't answer questions," Takashi replied. "You're too trusting, Aoi, and she's too suspicious."

"I-I just…" Cidela shrank away from him, his pressure and her own worries bringing the whole weight of her predicament down on her at once. She was trapped, and the person she had begun to hope would help her was being taken away from her. "I just want to go home," she said, hugging herself. She slipped back into Japanese, making Takashi start, "I'm lost and I don't know how or why. I want to go home! I want my mother! I'm lost and I think I'm dying and I don't know why!" She was crying, curling up in a ball, staring at the water that was her prison and her window to hope, but managed not to sob, even as she whispered again, "I want my mother."

"Congratulations Shimazu," Sara hissed. "You've traumatized a lost little girl. Get out of my lab, before I do it for you."

Takashi stood there a moment longer, then sighed and said, "I'm sorry for your situation, miss. Best of luck. Nelson, I'll have a team outside, just in case."

Cidela heard his footsteps retreating, then the hatch hissed closed, but she was thinking of her Okaa-chan, her friends, and her fear. She thought she heard, just barely, "well, he does have a cute butt," but it was very soft. Then Sara spoke louder, "I am sorry, dear. I wish I could give you a hug, hold you, and promise it would all come out all right. But I was never very good at lying. I promise, I'll do everything I can to get you home, but I'm only human."

Cidela nodded, but could not stop crying, could not stop shivering. She had no idea what had happened to her, if she was ever going to be able to get back, if anything would turn out her way again. Then Sara started singing, a song Cidela did not know in a language she did not understand. But the words were soft and comforting, almost a lullaby, though Sara was patently trying to sing out of her own vocal range. For a while, the two of them sat there, Sara singing, Cidela crying. But the song helped, the sense that someone did care for her, was there to help, let Cidela recover and put her fear and sorrow away. They were still there, and Cidela figured they would return, but for the moment she could turn away from them.

"Th-thank you, Sara-san," Cidela whispered when she finally managed to relax her muscles and stop shivering.

"Anytime, little one," Sara said.

"I… I did not recognize the song."

"It's a lullaby my parents used to sing me, especially after those fanatics found us back home. It was better than what you're going through, Uncle Wilhelm managed to get my whole family off Earth, so I wasn't alone, but it was still scary. Suo Gan, it's called, from my father's mother. Do you sing?"

Cidela flushed, remembering Mariachi's lessons and that one terrifying afternoon in the cafeteria. "O-only a little," she admitted, "U-usually with Okaa-chan."

Sara smiled at her, "I'll teach it to you, then, and you can sing it with her when you get home. I have a few more tests, then I have some ideas, a way to take the strain off your linker core. Also, a suggestion – you have a familiar, yes? I can sense some resonance in your magic that seems like it."

"His name is Rafiq," Cidela said, smiling sadly, "I miss him, too. I miss everyone, even Mercedes aggravating Laura."

"When you go back into the null-space," Sara said, "try to find him, Rafiq. From what you've described, I think you were following your device, which won't work. It's too close to you, now, too much a part of you. Rafiq is separate enough that, if you try to find him, he should be a steady point. Oh, and don't pull your device to you, that would be bad."

"Um… why?"

"The way the shaping core is anchored, it mingles you and your device on a very deep level. Where you are, it is, wherever it is, you are. So at the moment, your device is possibly all that is holding you anchored to the time and place you left. If you call it, you'll lose that connection, that anchor, and I don't know what will happen to you. So don't call it. You don't need it on you, anyhow, not for the shaping magic, so it's more useful where it is. Now, the song's in Welsh, so I'm not going to bother telling you how to spell it – even the Welsh don't know how to spell their language. But, it starts like this…"

Cidela did not know how long it took Sara to finish her scans, or to carefully construct spells to provide her a separate anchor and source of power to support her in the Void, and a third to turn her healing gift back on itself to handle the strains she was putting on her physical body. It took long enough for her to learn Sara's lullaby, and practice it a few times, even try a duet. Cidela almost asked questions several times, but always came the worry of changing something, of altering her own present by changing her past.

It was not until Sara finished, and they were trying to avoid sending Cidela back, when she finally asked, "Um… Sara-san… if you don't like him… why do you call him Ta-chan?"

Sara blinked at her a moment, then grinned sheepishly and flushed a little. "Because it annoys him. He had to learn Japanese for an investigation on Terra a year or so ago, so he's the only one aboard who gets it, which makes him look like a petulant bully when he yells at me for it. Someone has to prick a hole in his ego, or the muscle-brained cretin might begin to think he really is as good as everyone claims."

"A-and Aoi?"

That made Sara grimace. "His people have their own prejudices. According to them, blue eyes, like mine, are a sign of madness." She pouted, "I keep telling him, I am not a _mad scientist_, I'm an _evil genius_."

Cidela giggled at her mock-affronted tone, seeing flashes of Laura's sarcasm in Sara. "Thank you, Sara-san. Even if it doesn't work, thank you for trying, for everything."

"Just promise me you'll only use your powers for good," Sara replied with a wider grin.

Cidela knew she was mostly joking, but decided to reassure her anyhow. "My device's activation phrase ended 'they will know my name by the numbers I have saved.' I'm a healer, Sara-san. I'll be a doctor, eventually."

Sara's grin turned into a true smile, "Good. I never liked combat, it's too messy and unpredictable. Too many people get hurt. Speaking of unpredictable, it's time for you to go, dear. Good luck."

"Cidela," she said, realizing at the last moment she had never introduced herself, and reached out to touch Sara's extended hand for the first time. "Cidela nii Shamal." She saw Sara's smile vanish into shock just before contact was made, and then she was back in the Void, the pinprick of light gone.

"Why… did she recognize Okaa-chan's name?" Cidela worried at it for a minute, then shook her head. "I can ask Hayate-sensei when I get home. For now… where are you, Rafiq? I need your help," she sighed a little, "as usual."

00000

Author's note: long, long chapter, mostly because the last scene ballooned from 'isn't that a cool idea for a meeting' to 'good God this is plot-relevant.' Before any of you ask, NO, Laura does not have Nanoha's Starlight Breaker. She has the first stage of it, which she applies in her own fashion. For the curious, no, Sara and Takashi did not get 'love at first sight' – theirs was not quite a Slap-Slap-Kiss relationship, but close. The song Sara taught Cidela exists, it's a traditional Welsh lullaby, lyrics and translation available on Wikipedia, and is most famous for being sung by that annoying kid from the movie Empire of the Sun.

00000

Baughn: I hereby disclaim any responsibility for lost sleep on the part of readers:). The last few chapters have been very focused on Noriko mostly because that was the major event, with a ridiculous amount of immediate fall-out. I could probably have info-dumped a lot of it, but I don't like doing that with major events – capabilities and peripherals, yeah, sure, but not something as critical to the story as Noriko becoming Emperor of Japan. Things will move a little faster now, until the next attack by Al Hanthis. Regarding the gravity issue, they can get around it using some of the flight magics, but the real question is, will anyone think of it? Gravity is one of those fundamental things that, outside of physicists, people tend to not think about. The problem with building a truly comprehensive scanning system – or any scanning system, actually – is one of data-overload. You have to filter out contacts – false signals, local terrain, routine movements, things like that – or all you get back is cluttered garbage. Enough computing power would let you process that, sure, but you'd need a lot of computing power to handle all the sensors Al Hanthis would have to emplace to get the sort of coverage you're talking about. So, like low-level radar programmers, Al Hanthis has to compromise. Their sensors (and the computers and people monitoring them) are good, but not perfect, and there are ways through and around them. As for HAL assuming Allina is the imposter – are you sure it thinks it's HAL? The imposter charge is a sign of just how screwy the entity in Al Hanthis is – it truly believes (and may very well be) Allina. Precisely what it is will be worked out later on in the story, though. You are right that no one is truly incorruptible, but remember what Szash said – they are very few in number. Also remember, the entire Nanoha setting, even with my tweaks, is much more idealistic than the real world. There'll be more on the Paladins – both what they can do, and what controls exist on them – in much later chapters.

Kell Shock: You are correct once again, it should be 'Megan', not Meghan. That one I keep getting wrong and have to correct, for some reason. The cyber-Allina is very much a reflection of Allina, and remember, the first thing Allina tried to do when the Circles captured her in February was to get in touch with Niranjana, make sure she was okay. Attracting Al Hanthis' attention is the _last_ thing she's going to want to do. You are right that Laura can get very close to the edge of killing someone, so long as she doesn't go over it – but that would probably violate her sense of justice, thus breaking her second oath. The Paladin's definition of 'justice' will be individual and flexible, but built on a common foundation as the Empire is formed. Laura's oath to Noriko was supposed to be a surprise, but it's one of the controls on the Paladins, and very important to both girls – remember, Laura's not one to be a 'servant', whatever her oath says – she'll serve, but it'll be in her own way, as always. I was not really trying to 'separate' Yussef, but more thinking of it from Laura's perspective – her best friend in the world just lost almost everyone in her life, and almost immediately got shoved into a life-long job that is going to distance her from everyone who remains. That distance goes doubly so for Laura, who is a foreigner (remember the miko at Kiyomizudera?). The oath is a way for her to get around that distance and help her friend. As for Yussef being 'just left' with the Myrmidons…:) They're the Myrmidons, and fully intend to live up to their namesakes. Noriko and her Paladins, Yussef and his Myrmidons…

PokemonJoe1: Thank you for the compliments, I appreciate it. The story is going to go on for quite a while – I originally aimed for sixty chapters, but it's grown slightly (Events of the last couple chapters were supposed to be the early twenties, not the early thirties). Regarding your guesses, as I've stated previously you are right about the Dark Witch, although there's some more wrinkles to Natalia's situation. You may be right about Cidela being the Goddess of Light, she's certainly powerful enough, but the Goddess' awakening won't be for a while, whoever she is. Thanks for the review!

Hignum: There'll be some action next chapter, but not the mages. Some other players in the war have a point to make, though I assure you there will be a satisfyingly large explosion or two.

Moczo: I'm not sure if I'll ever detail Laura's (and Allison's, don't forget!) assault on Willan's Olympus Mons facility. Suffice to say, it was messy but not fatal. It is entirely possible that they took the facility, evacuated it, and _then_ destroyed it in a spectacularly overblown manner in order to make a point. I do have a rather convoluted ending planned, and I'm fairly sure some of you are going to howl at me for elements of it. As for how it'll all work out… 'messy' comes to mind. There is, quite deliberately, some confusion in how terms are used and who is where, which I'm deliberately leaving in place because of my own experiences studying history. We know a lot of things that happened, but we have a much harder time figuring out _why_ they happened, and political/governmental structures and arrangements are often utterly illogical to those on the outside while making perfect sense to those on the inside.

Rathmun: I will agree that Laura is crazy, though not in the formal dysfunctional sense. She just sees the world and her place in it a little differently from most people. Allison is not really crazy, but she could easily become so if her temper ever gets the better of her, though Juliet is in more danger there.

Templar Prime: A lot of Allison's abilities and methods are drawn from a combination of sniper training documentaries, hunting documentaries, and books that cover both, though I'm trying to keep it all general enough to avoid glaring errors. Niranjana's therapy is based on similar sources and some attempt at logical extrapolation on my part, for how a clumsy emergency bio-cyber interface would function and/or fail. The 'Twilight' part of the Paladins' title actually comes from a romantic re-imagining of a Marine Corp quote: "We do the things we wish no one had to do." Laura fully intends the Paladins to do things she wishes no one had to do: fight, struggle, and even die so that others won't have to – that's the sort of romantic she is. Regarding Noriko's non-Imperial family, while they have gone unmentioned, they suffered just as grievously, and you are right that some people died who were (and possibly remain) unidentified as Blood Penance victims. I hadn't thought about it when you asked, but debated whether or not the Crown Prince's wife would have survived – but if the Blood Penance worked from that odd an angle (blood relation through a cousin who died because of being Noriko's uncle's child…) the death-toll would have gone beyond what I was willing to accept – even as small as Noriko's family is, that would have taken a significant fraction of Japan's population in one blow. So no, it's only those who were directly blood related to Noriko who died. Still, the Crown Prince's wife probably wishes she had been – in a way, her life has been destroyed even more thoroughly than Noriko's.

Mousou: Okay, calmly, breathe, take a break…:) Seriously, that was quite a compliment and thank you. When it comes to politics, I tend to draw inspiration from two reliable sources. For logical thought out things, such as Yosho's and Szash's efforts at mutual undermining in the Conclave, I tend to rely on Tom Clancy's books and style. For the more ridiculous and/or stupid things, such as Yosho's half-hearted efforts at hiding his involvement in Blood Penance, or Noriko's elevation to Emperor, I tend to rely on real life and history, sad as that commentary may be. I'll admit, I'm no fonder of traitors than you seem to be, they're right down there with people who harm kids and rapists in my book. Still, Natalia's is a complicated situation, and while your idea for who/what her 'anchor' is would be poetic, it's not what I'm going for. I'm still debating which option to use for her anchor, but it won't be her brother. You are right that, however this ends up, Natalia's life is basically ruined, though the end I've got planned for her is particularly torturous. With the foreshadowing, that's a combination of how I plan (my imagination runs away with scenes that are all set widely apart, in no particular order), and the fact that I'll slip in off-hand comments or references early, then those will trigger inspiration and I'll work them in later. The first creates fortuitous foreshadowing, the second is more deliberate if less planned. I'm actually having issues with battles in this story. In Academy Blues there were only a couple real fights to write out, and Laura's fight with Li was always planned to be the biggest. Here there are a lot more, and they all involve a lot more people. I have skimped on the personal-scale battles, and I do have some plans to do more detailed fights (the Szash vs. Nanoha battle, for instance) but I'm not sure how well they will turn out. I actually think I went overboard with the OCs in this story, and I'm definitely having to stretch to keep some of them included and relevant. As for the focus on the girls, well, this is a Nanoha-verse story – I may not be using a 'pink bishoujo ghetto', but that's the base 'verse, so… shrug. Regarding the realism, thank you – I'm not going for 'this is the real world', but 'realistic' is definitely a must, especially given all the magic that's getting thrown around. You are right that Cidela's turning into a woobie, which both was and was not my original intent for her character. I planned all the way back in Academy Blues for her to be the quiet one that puts up with a lot, but the arc I put together for her here is harsher than I originally meant it to be. The above scene was probably the worst, as far as torturing her, though she still has a ways to go to get home. Anyhow, thanks for the review!

Jack Inqu: Laura's speech, like Noriko's 'Rising Sun' speech, has been planned out for a while, though the name of her Paladins and the wording of the Creed were both in flux for a while. It's going to have some very far-reaching effects, though a lot of them are going to come up rather late, some not even until the epilogue. Szash's future-quote was based on another thirty years of events, so some of her opinion and some of her references (even beyond Olympus Mons) were to such post-Endless Waltz events. But yes, the Bureau will eventually overcome Kriegsen's monkey-wrench and get involved, which will not be pretty, for anyone.

Phily: Takashi is smart and skilled – he was a Bureau Enforcer for years, after all. Even his method of gravity-detection can be hidden from, however, if the mage who's doing the hiding is aware enough. Hayate's methods can also be hidden from, even the tracer, given preparation and thought, which is what that training scenario was about. The situation with Allina & the HAL/Allina/whatever-it-is _is_ complicated, by design. Allina and Niranjana are closer, in some ways, to Al Hanthis' idea of mage-enhancement, with the way their devices interconnect. But Al Hanthis is prepared for that (as evinced by their response to Allina's interference in Hong Kong). Precisely what's going on there is going to take some time for everyone to figure out. The Imperial March was something that had a different point than most people (in story and out:) have noticed, though it has sort of failed in that purpose. It'll get mentioned again later, when the one who did it comes clean. Regarding Laura's oaths, she would not interpret them so loosely as 'I just incapacitated him, it's not my fault someone else shot him a second later'. She'd probably have trouble handing over a serial killer to the authorities in Texas, to be honest – yeah, sure, she may not be the one to inject the chemicals, but she handed him over knowing what would probably happen to him. Willan is the Master Adept who found the Blood Penance spell, and the Olympus Mons Szash referenced is the famous Martian volcano, the largest known in the Solar system. I have certainly been trying to get Endless Waltz up to 'epic' level, and I'm glad to hear that I'm apparently succeeding. Despite that, though, the events Szash mentioned on Mars are post-Endless Waltz – yes, I have planned out events from _after_ the story to better help me plan events _in_ the story, which is backfiring a little, because I'm getting the urge to write out the Olympus Mons assault.

L. Ravensky: Glad you enjoyed the story, always good to hear. I'm afraid I don't use any sort of secondary archive – I only post here. If I ever actually finish an original story, it'll go up on another site, but nothing at the moment. As for Vita's theme-song, 'Punk It Up' is from Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 (apologies, the 2041 in my profile is a typo), which was released (I have the boxed DVD set, it's excellent), but I'm not sure who wrote or performed the song – the source I got it from just lists 'original soundtrack'. If you watch BGCT2040, 'Punk It Up' is the song played during the highway chase-scene when Priss first uses the Motoslave – it's essentially one long guitar riff over a driving drum line, suitable for both dancing and beat-downs.

22671991: Feel free to miss-read subtexts, you may or may not be wrong:). With Laura and Noriko, I will freely admit that I have yet to decide just how far their feelings go, or where they are going to wind up. I have equally valid arguments, based on the chapters already posted and those planned, for friendship, very close friendship, attempted romance, or true love. There are a couple more potential relationships built up in the story already, and not just Allina and Niranjana. Thanks for the compliment, and the review!

Shdwhawk: Thanks for the notes on names. I looked up Chinese, Indian, and some of the Japanese names on-line, with all the reliability that implies, though I did find multiple sources for each, for as much reliability as possible. I only found two listings for Chen-chi and for Jun meaning 'truth', and I think Chen-chi was regional, but I don't remember where. Thank you for the compliments on the series, I appreciate them. The research wasn't as hard as you think, though, it's mostly a couple decades of trivia that I've gotten curious about and looked up. Thanks for the review!


	37. 36 The Oppenheimer Protocol

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-36 – The Oppenheimer Protocol-

Jasper Reynolds was known as 'Sneezy' to his pilots and crews, due to an unfortunate incident years before at helicopter pilot training at Pensacola involving low-altitude maneuvers, hay-fever, and some forgotten medicines. To the Navy, he was known as Commander Reynolds, squadron commander, Helicopter Squadron Four of Carrier Air Wing Three, the Black Knights. To the men and women flying off the USS _Harry S. Truman_, he was Black Knight Six, the guy who commanded the guys who fished them out of the drink when things went pear-shaped. He had gotten a lot of beers out of that last one, and rather wished he was earning a few more right then.

The specifics of his current mission were not really that unpleasant, just rather odd. The entire squadron, minus the rescue bird covering launch and recovery at the carrier and Black Knight Three with its burst hydraulic line, was flying in a loose box formation over a semi-random patch of the Atlantic Ocean some two hundred miles west-north-west of the Straights of Gibraltar, with the Truman another hundred miles west of them. The search pattern was a complete waste of time. There was no reason to have this many Seahawks dropping on a single target, but the Admiral had told him to take the whole squadron, so he had taken the whole squadron. They were five miles apart each, which meant their search areas were overlapping massively, and given modern data-transmission speeds, there was little advantage to having more platforms over a single target area like this.

What truly made him wish he was somewhere else was the target. Reynolds was not a fan of sub-hunting on the best of days – he had very nearly gone Coast Guard when he was a kid, but the Navy offered better pay, better training, and better educational opportunities. He was good at anti-submarine warfare – no one made squadron commander if they were _bad_ at ASW – but he preferred search and rescue. SAR was saving lives, and more challenging in a lot of ways. ASW was like shooting fish in a barrel – unaware targets that had little to no chance to escape. ASW against a horde of biological killing machines that rumor said were headed for New York, now, that was unpleasant and frightening.

From the sonar station behind the co-pilot, Deshaun Harrison, the flight engineer and sonar operator, said, "Dome down, getting signal." The Seahawk's dipping sonar, a transducer and receiver on the end of a four-hundred foot cable, was the 'dome', and Harrison was getting some sort of signal. "Biologics," Harrison said after a minute, "lot of 'em. Damn lot of 'em. Sounds like…"

The helicopter suddenly staggered in the air, lurching downwards. Reynolds and his co-pilot, Lieutenant Frank Thoms – Tommy-boy, to the squadron – both swore in unison. Reynolds, in control, pulled at the collective, working the stick to maintain attitude. Harrison in back shouted, "What the hell was that, Sneezy? You run into Rudolph or something?"

"It wasn't air currents," Thoms said, "weather's clear."

Reynolds frowned, trying to figure out what had happened, when Harrison shouted, "Jesus! Two of those things are climbing the line!"

Reynolds twitched, then shouted back, barely remembering the intercom, "Cutting the dome! Jettison, jettison, now, now, now!"

There as a sharp thud, then the Seahawk bounced upwards, suddenly relieved of significant weight, and Reynolds had to fight the controls for a moment. The abrupt altitude and mass changes had cost him his steady hover and level position, which was no doubt going to get his piloting insulted in the ready room during debrief.

Once the helicopter was steady in the air again, Reynolds brought up the squadron frequency, "All Black Knights, retract dome now. Squadron orders, dipping sonar is restricted for mission duration."

Thoms shook his head and muttered, "Should've thought of that," Thoms commented. "Good thing we weren't lower."

"It wasn't that sharp a maneuver," Reynolds replied, "we wouldn't have gone in the drink."

Thoms shook his head, "Not from the jerk, no. But one of those things in here? From scuttlebutt, that would not be a pleasant experience."

Reynolds shook his head, "No, probably not. Get on the horn, though, tell CAG we're confirming the Seed are here, in force. Looks like the whole batch."

"On it," Thoms said.

It took less than a minute to relay the message, time Reynolds spent regaining lost altitude and shifting position slightly. A glance out the side of the helicopter showed heads bobbing in the water, roughly where the dome had gone down. A few more appeared, grey scales hard to see against the green and white of the ocean, bobbing and blinking in a way that reminded him of seals, of all things. Each of them was staring back up at him. Reynolds had seen the footage that leaked out of Hong Kong, and a lot more had been released after the girl in Japan made her speech. He found he had no problems agreeing with the rumored Chinese orders to their troops for dealing with Seed – kill them all, whatever it takes.

He glanced back in time to see Thoms start, then heard, "Ah, roger that, Truman Ops, Passing the comm." Thoms glanced at him, then pointed at the radio.

Reynolds switched his helmet to the Air Wing's frequency, "Truman Ops, this is Black Knight Six Actual. Go ahead."

"Black Knight Six, this is Truman Ops, we are cross-linking you to CNO… now."

Reynolds gave the radio a confused look for a moment. _CNO? Who the Hell came up with this joke? Admirals don't waste time talking to…_

"Black Knight Six, this is Chief of Naval Operations Actual." That made Reynolds jerk, then share a shocked look with Thoms. They did not recognize the voice, but the call-sign was… hard to question. No one would play a joke this stupid at a time like this. The authentication codes that followed were impossible to question.

Once Thoms and Harrison had the codes confirmed – Harrison had to dig out the squadron code manual to do that – Reynolds said, "Black Knight Six confirms authentication, sir. What do you need?"

"I realize this is unusual, Commander," the CNO said, "but the situation is extremely delicate. Can you confirm one hundred percent that the biologics below your position are Seed of Leviathan and that you are above the main force detected leaving Egypt nine days ago?"

"Ah, not one hundred percent, sir," Reynolds said. It was honest truth and some temporizing, since he was not sure what the CNO wanted. "These things are noisy on the right wavelengths to be Seed, and we got visual on a few. There are a lot of them out there, but they're spread out over a large area. We're also now limited to sonobouys only, using the dome is too dangerous."

"Understood, Commander. How certain are you of your identification of the nature and size of the force?"

Reynolds frowned, thinking it over a moment. For the CNO to be directly contacting a field asset like the Black Knights, they had to be seriously twitchy about something back in Washington. The Seed alone could be it – scuttlebutt said they were headed for New York, which had all sorts of nasty implications – but the CNO sounded almost afraid of the answer. "As certain as humanly possible, sir. They're definitely Seed – we almost had one as a passenger a minute ago – and they're spread out over a wide area moving as a unit. None of my birds are reporting distant matching contacts, either, so they appear to be concentrated over a four mile diameter."

The radio was silent for a time, a minute or two, then the CNO returned. "Understood, Commander, and excellent work. Be advised, USS _Rhode Island_ has just launched on your current coordinates corrected for Seed motion. Get clear. CNO out."

The radio clicked, and for a moment Reynolds' heart froze. _The_ _Rhode Island__… Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, that's a boomer!_ He stared at Thoms a moment, then punched the radio to the squadron frequency while Thoms almost broke one of the displays as he brought up navigation and started putting together an evac route. "All Black Knights, this is Six, prep for emergency squadron maneuvers…"

The Truman's air control staff beat Thoms to the course, coming over the squadron frequency right behind Reynolds, "All Black Knights, come to course zero-eight-zero and climb to Angels ten, speed to one-eight-zero knots. Repeat, all Black Knights to course zero-eight-zero, Angels ten, speed one-eight-zero knots. The battle-group is turning west to evac the area, your minimum time to safe distance is course zero-eight-zero climbing to Angels ten. You should have fuel range for Portugal."

Reynolds banked the helicopter around, but stayed in hover, "All Knights, this is Six, confirm course, altitude and speed from Truman Ops. Execute maneuver immediately, Six is tail."

There were a few seconds hesitation, the other pilots checking their airspace, then rest of the squadron turned to the east almost as one, noses dropping as they accelerated and climbed. Reynolds made sure the rest were in motion, then followed, hauling up on the collective and twisting the throttle to the stops. The time it took the squadron to get underway was brief, but that and the familiarity of the codes and prior training, checking on his squadron, helped settle his initial panic. He had never trained to avoid an inbound 'friendly' nuclear missile, but clearing an area at speed was a familiar necessity.

Calmer or not, he did not stop praying. He had no idea how long until the _Rhode Island_'s missile or missiles hit, or how many warheads were about to detonate behind him. That meant he had only the vaguest idea if his squadron would get clear of the blast. He had even less idea if they _could_ get clear of the blast, or clear of follow-on effects. The helicopters were going flat out, pushing a little past their rated max, and Reynolds could already see warnings blinking on his displays. They would have to hold until after the blast, when the squadron could slow down to a more reasonable pace. If the helicopters did not hold, or did not get far enough away, a few warnings now would not matter, but that was in the hands of maintenance crews back on the ship, more than him. So he reached for every last bit of help he could find, praying silently.

Harrison was not so demure, reciting every prayer he could think of over the helicopter's intercom in a bewildering array of faiths. Reynolds was not sure anyone had ever combined so many religions into one prayer session, but would later commend his flight engineer for his breadth of knowledge.

The blast came just over ten minutes later and somewhat north of where they had hovered over the Seed. Their first warning was the light, a flash that was painfully bright even though they were headed directly away from it. Seconds behind it came the blast-front. At twenty nautical miles, it still took both Reynolds and Thoms to hold the aircraft in the air, and they lost a good six thousand feet while struggling against the buffeting and turbulence and malfunctioning instruments, but it was nowhere near as bad as they had expected. Even the fritzing computers could be dealt with, rebooting in seconds. The only moment of real panic Reynolds had was when the turbine engine stuttered and almost died, but it recovered before he could de-couple the main rotor to auto-rotate.

Even before the aircraft was stable again, Reynolds was looking outwards and forwards, checking on the squadron. He counted the aircraft carefully, double-checked, then sighed in relief. During the evac, the squadron had settled into a reverse echelon formation more from habit than any need. That formation was now mostly gone, and the helicopters were scattered over several altitudes and off at multiple bearings generally south of him. But they were all still flying, if raggedly, and Five and Two were even maneuvering to return to formation.

"Uuhhh, Sneezy," Harrison came over the intercom, "you, uh… wanna take a look out to port and, uh… tell me if I need to see the doc when we get back to the ship?"

Still watching his squadron, Reynolds glanced out the windows to his left briefly, noticed nothing but blast-tossed ocean below, and replied, "Why, Harrison? You flash-blinded?"

"Maybe, sir. Or I think maybe the radiation got me… 'cause there's a hot chick out there flying alongside us." That finally broke Reynolds focus, and for a second he debated if he had heard correctly.

Then he looked left. Sure enough, flying along at the same speed as his helicopter, was a woman in a purple coat, some armor on her hands, arms and feet, dark pink or light purple hair in a ridiculously long tail that was whipping in the air behind her. She was close enough to make him nervous, but not close enough to actually crowd him. She met his eyes for a moment, then rolled and dropped, descending beneath the helicopter, where he lost her.

"Thoms…"

"I saw it," Thoms said, shaking his head, "I don't believe it, but I saw it."

Harrison interrupted again, "Uh, she's still there, Sneezy, off to starboard this time."

The radio crackled in his ear, then a new voice said in passable English, "I am Signum, of Hayate Yagami's Wolkenritter, out of Japan. Your aircraft appears stable, and a quick scan reveals no damage to you or your crew. Do you require immediate assistance?"

Reynolds started, then shared a look with Thoms, then shook his head. "Uhm, no ma'am, but thank you for the offer."

"Very good." A purplish glow appeared on the windscreen, resolving into numbers, "if you require assistance prior to reaching the coast, transmit on that frequency and one of my comrades will arrive momentarily to assist. Your pardon, I must check on the rest of the squadron."

The woman – Signum, and wasn't that a weird name – accelerated. It was almost insulting, he was pushing his helo to go as fast as he was, and she just… went faster, without even the decency to have an actual airframe around her. Reynolds watched her go, noted her angling off to port, then keyed the squadron frequency again. "Alright boys and girls, enough of this sloppy flying. Return to formation, Angels ten, and decrease speed to one four zero knots. We're not outrunning Armageddon anymore. Also, be advised, one of the friendly mages is checking up on us, so be polite. We'll maintain current heading of zero-eight-zero and wait for Portugese air traffic control, until Tommy-boy stops trying to stare up the dangerous lady's skirt and focuses on his job again."

Thoms jerked, wrenching his eyes away from Signum to glare at Reynolds, then – very politely, Reynolds was a senior officer after all – flipped him the bird.

00000

Yussef watched the last of the first-years stagger back to the staging section of the workroom, grinning slightly at their exhausted appearance. It had been their first time in his class using the training devices Hayate had issued at the start of the week, and they had all plainly over-estimated how quickly the devices would assimilate and the advantages the training devices would give them. Still, they had not done too badly.

"Not bad," he told them all. They were doing slightly better than he expected, and Chen-chi and Jun even had enough energy left to stop themselves from making rude gestures. The pair settled for muttering at each other in Mandarin too softly for Yussef to hear. "Not bad at all. That was it for the day, so go ahead and get cleaned up. I'll send you all the formal evals in the morning. If you've got questions, feel free to ask over dinner."

He turned to get the door for them, but Mercedes holding up a hand stopped him, but she hesitated when he turned back to her. "Something you need, Mercedes?"

She glanced at her classmates a moment, who all met her gaze but were patently waiting for her. Then she turned back and said, "We, uh, wanted to talk to someone about the next battle."

Yussef blinked, then sighed mentally, turning the not-question over in his mind. _They want to go with us, I know it._ "You just got your training devices a few days ago. Saeryn and Rhys still have another week to go before their devices are finished. Even then, I doubt Hayate-sensei will let the two of them go. She doesn't like letting us go, she only does because she doesn't have a choice if she wants enough effective mages."

Mercedes nodded along with him, "We know that, but…" she grimaced, "I don't think I could stand sitting here on my hands during another Hong Kong, Yussef. None of us could. So I… we came up with an idea. We can form a wolfpack. Tai-yu-sensei showed us how, and we've practiced a little. We can do it, for any of us. The training devices help with that a lot, make it much easier."

Yussef shook his head, "That's impressive, Mercedes, but doesn't answer the basic problem – none of you know enough magic yet, especially not with how classes have been disrupted. You're learning enough to protect yourselves here, sure, but everything you've learned about combat magic so far is how to survive it long enough to get help. Even if Hayate-sensei agreed to let you come, there's no way I would let you anywhere near the battle line."

"And that's not what we're thinking," Warner said. "We are not stupid, Yussef."

"Didn't say you are, but even my boys can get more gung-ho than is good for them. A lot of us were rather more eager than we should have been last year. Ask Laura about China sometime – politely, mind you! – or ask Niranjana and Allina about the Ukraine. Hell, ask Marcel about India, especially the lobby fight and Juliet. So what are you thinking about?"

"We'll wolfpack Dider," Mercedes said. "Shamal-sensei's given him enough training he can work with the field medics, get the injured clear and stable, things like that. If it goes off before the Creepy Twin gets their devices done," the twins glared at her in unison, but she ignored them, "they'll help with the wolfpack. If it's after they have their devices, they'll guard the rest of us."

"That's got to be… one of the more intelligent ideas I've heard yet," Yussef said after a moment. "Not bright, mind you, but better than most. I'm not at all sure Didier could function in a combat environment, he's been avoiding this class specifically because of problems with such things. Then there's the fact that, even if you claim you're not going to fight, you're still going to be in a combat zone, and vulnerable."

"We'll stay with the other wolfpacks," Chen-chi argued. "Only Didier'll go out into the fighting, and even then he'll just be doing fetch-and-carry, first aid, stuff like that. We'll be safe."

Yussef shook his head, "Parking you kids amongst a bunch of Circle fanatics, half of whom are liable to be Revenants, while you're spaced out in a ritual at the edge of a combat zone – and the wolfpacks have to be relatively close, or they loose cohesion – is not 'safe', Chen-chi."

"Safer than you second-years," she shot back.

"Probably, but still not safe. Not safe enough for Hayate-sensei. Convince me."

"We will protect them," one of the twins said.

Yussef raised an eyebrow at them. He still could not figure out how Laura told them apart, every time he thought he had it down, they convinced him he was wrong. "How? Your devices are at least a week away from activation, and you'll need at least two weeks after that to adjust to them and learn to use them at anything beyond a basic level."

"We are Circle," the twins replied, then one continued, "we will adjust more quickly than you did. We will not be experimenting with unknowns, merely adapting to greater reserves of power."

Yussef almost told them to 'ask Cid-chan about that', remembering her own activation, but thinking of his missing classmate made him grimace instead. "Yeah, power," he said instead, "power makes a lot of difference, girls."

"We can adapt our basic shields and busters," the other twin continued, "we will protect them, well enough to handle any Revenants."

"All right, if you focus just on those minimal levels, I'll grant you could probably be functional as a static short-term defense. In three weeks, if nothing goes wrong. The Seed are already moving, headed for New York or London. They'll be there in four or five days, with the Guard right there with them." Yussef shook his head again, "I'll bring it up with Hayate-sensei, but there's no way you're going to New York or London, and don't get your hopes up about any future battles.

"Look, I know none of you want to stay behind. I hated it last year, when I had to wait up on the _Asura_ for the Ukraine and China strikes to return, and that was just a few minutes. I understand, really I do. But if we brought you guys along now, we would all spend more time worrying about you than about doing our jobs. We've been having a hard enough time not worrying about each other. After what the Russian did to Cid-chan and Niranjana…" he shrugged, giving them an apologetic look, "I'm sorry, but I don't think it'll happen, and if Hayate-sensei asks my opinion, I'll tell her to turn you down."

"We'll ask her anyhow," Mercedes said, not quite glaring at him. "We'll keep asking."

Yussef grinned at her and nodded, "Good. You also need to work harder in class – this one and all the rest. You might prove me wrong, for which I would be grateful. We need all the mages we can get, just not at the cost of throwing kids who aren't prepared into a firefight. Now, go get cleaned up. You should have some time to accost one of the teachers before dinner, if you really want to."

The first years looked rather unhappy with him – Kaemon and Ekavir looked downright rebellious. But they all recognized by now when he was not going to debate any further, and filed out. Yussef followed, securing the workroom behind them, then headed for the front stairs. He had some work to do in the Library, if he was going to have the evaluations ready by morning.

Vita's telepathic signal interrupted his thoughts, _'They'll have more than five days, Yussef. The stupid Americans just launched a pair of ICBMs off a sub.'_

_'SLBMs,'_ Yussef corrected absently, _'if they came off a sub.'_

_'Don't get smart with me! They're nukes, whatever you call 'em!'_

Yussef shrugged, _'And? The Seed are out to sea, right? I doubt even the US would fire on Seed near a population center of any sort, and shipping is all being diverted from the Seeds' probable course, right? Nothing but Seed and fish to get hurt, so why not?'_

Vita was silent for a bit, then snarled, _'Don't get smart with me. Hayate-sama's going ballistic, she's yelling at Hughes and their Admiral Dahvid right now. Signum and I are going to check the blast area, the idiots fired on their own fleet. Hayate is going with us, then we're all going to Washington.'_

_'Nuking the Atlantic isn't that big a deal,'_ Yussef said, _'not unless it fails.'_

_'It's not the Atlantic we're worried about,'_ Vita said, _'It's Cairo. Enough nukes might be able to crack Al Hanthis' shield, but they'll wipe out Cairo at the same time, probably render the entire Middle East, North Africa, and the Mediterranean uninhabitable. And when was the last time someone exercised __restraint__ in war? If they're willing to nuke the Atlantic, someone'll think to nuke Cairo. We're heading out, you help the cats hold down the fort, right?'_

_'Right, sensei. Will you be back before Noriko has to go to Tokyo for the press conference tomorrow?'_

_'Maybe. We'll let you know if we won't.'_

The connection faded, and Yussef sighed slightly. He was not going to have time to get the class evaluations ready after all. Instead of settling into the common area when he reached the Library, he headed up stairs and into the office wing, to the one set aside for Hidan. He would need to get a copy of the packet on security for the conference tomorrow, and check in with Lotte-sensei to see if she needed anything while on watch.

His thoughts were interruptded once again when Maunders fell into step next to him. "Al Khan," she said.

"Maunders," he replied cautiously. She had been polite enough, even helpful, when he and the Myrmidons picked her brain the weekend before, though she had been reticent when they showed her the various versions of their Al Hanthis assault plan. She had watched, not said anything insulting, but not said anything very helpful, either. "What can I do for you?"

"We're taking a trip," she said, "you, me, Zafira, Vita."

Yussef almost laughed at that, "Not right now we're not." She gave him a curious look, and he smirked a little, "Let's just say the United States remains the only nation to use a nuclear weapon in anger."

Maunders blanched at that, then asked, "Where?"

"The Atlantic, off Portugal, if I remember right."

Maunders visibly relaxed, then shrugged, "Well, that sucks for Portugal and Spain, they'll get the fallout, but ocean detonations tend to be cleaner – less dirt and debris to get sucked up into the blast and bind the heavy elements. The Seed, I'm guessing?"

Yussef nodded, "Hayate-sensei's on her way there now, then she's going to… express her displeasure in Washington."

Maunders frowned at that, "Displeasure for what? Nukes sound like a good idea to me, at least for something like Seed in the water."

Yussef shrugged, "I actually agree with you, but remember, Hayate-sensei's Japanese. She may have spent a decade off in space, but she was raised here initially. I won't say she's 'irrational' on the subject, but she doesn't think any use of a nuke is a good one. Especially not after what your Grand Circle was apparently planning after Nimrod failed last year. Either way, though… we're not taking a trip today."

Maunders shrugged, "Nope, but it wasn't today anyhow. We've got a meeting on Thursday with the Dogs. You're going to need them, or something like them, for your little strike plan, and they can help you refine that idea better than I can. Once you sell them on it, at least."

00000

Szash was sitting at her desk, clearing out some of her bureaucratic backlog, when a chime sounded and a communications screen appeared. It had the headers for the Guard Operations Bay, so she acknowledged it. Colonel Losius nodded a greeting, then said, "General, sensors have detected what appears to be an attack on the Seed force."

Szash perked up at that, "Really? At sea? How many mages?" If Hayate was going to try to fight Seed in the open, it could be an excellent opportunity to ambush her.

Losius shook his head, "None, ma'am. Some of those submersible naval forces appear to mount long-range ballistic weapons of some sort. We're getting no magic traces from the weapons in flight, but the acceleration rates could only be achieved by magic. I've got some of our technical types started on figuring them out, but that's for the future."

That brought lingering concerns from Hong Kong back to her mind, and she frowned. "How many weapons?"

"Two. They have other fleet elements in the area, including some airborne machines that were over the Seed force, but all such forces just made radical maneuvers to clear the area. Whatever it is, they apparently think it's going to be big. Should we intercept? The weapons will be above the horizon briefly in a minute or so. The timing would be tricky, but doable if we act now."

Szash considered it, and part of her wanted to eliminate whatever those things were right now. If the locals thought two weapons would suffice against thousands of Seed, that did not bode well for Al Hanthis' prospects, and discouraging their use was a valid objective. But she did not have enough information about the locals' weapons, and still had little idea what they had used against the Seed in Hong Kong so effectively. So she shook her head, "Monitor the situation closely, and see if you can get visual and data feeds of the strike. Let's get as much information as we can, see if these weapons are something we need to fear, or a grand mistake on the locals' part."

Losius nodded and disappeared, then a minute later a quartet of screens appeared – Losius, a view of the open ocean from the a low satellite angle, and two screens of sensor data. "The weapons appear to have broken up," Losius said a few minutes later, "but they did this once before and part of them continued to function. We are now tracking three… no, four descending objects on target to the Seed's general location, and various smaller pieces of debris. The last object will impact approximately two seconds after the first three. A staggered attack? Or a launch error?"

"Something to figure out after the strike," Szash commented, waving a greeting as Eri and Gali walked into her office to share the screens. "Any more launches?"

"No, ma'am. We have nothing on the satellite sensors regarding the launch platform, but I would hazard the vessel has already maneuvered away from those coordinates. There also do not appear to be very many of those ships, based on a quick read of the initial reconnaissance analysis."

"They may not need many of them," Szash said. "Those things are moving fast…"

"Ten seconds to first impacts," Losius said. "Nine… eight… seven…"

Szash was focused on the visual relay, which had enough clarity to show the four objects streaking in. They were burning bright lines across the screen, re-entry friction no-doubt tearing at their outer surfaces, too fast to distinguish as objects. The first three splashed into the ocean with minimal fanfare, and Szash started to tense. Then the fourth streaked in, she saw a brief glare of light, and the screen blanked. She opened her mouth to ask what had happened when the screen faded back in, and Losius swore.

The blast wave was still racing outward, as was the titanic column of vaporized water. The silence of the video stream made it all the more terrible, just a simple visual representation of horrific destruction. Szash could not take her eyes off it, just watched the cloud mushroom out as it reached lower pressures at altitude.

"That… gods above," Losius whispered, "that blast rivaled the L'Arc en Ciel, General. With no magic, no dimensional manipulation, just… gods, I have no idea what could do that."

"Two weapons," Szash said slowly. "Two weapons did that, on a ballistic course, from a mobile submersible weapons platform. I have a new mission for you, Losius. Find every one of those ships, every single one of them, and _destroy them_. Eri, put together a notice for the Conclave – the Guard will oppose any suggestion to move the city from its current location, and require Conclave authorization to undertake any such movement."

Eri gave her a confused look, "General?"

"Enough of those things, whatever they were, would kill us all in a heartbeat. Why haven't they done it yet?" She pointed at the floor, "Cairo, that's why. Millions of their own people."

"They're barbarians," Losius objected, "friendly casualties wouldn't be enough to stop them, would they?"

Szash shook her head, "That's Protector thinking, Losius. I've met their leaders, we've all studied their rulers, and look what they did in Hong Kong. If they didn't care about casualties, they would have done something like this there. They didn't, they used conventional forces against the Guard and those non-mage formations against the Seed. They won't use these… things, whatever they are, or they already would have. The city stays over Cairo, until this is over. Even after it's over, the shield stays up until we've accounted for every one of those weapons and destroyed them. Gods, could you imagine if they lobbed one of those through the cargo portals, or snuck one in aboard a lighter?" Szash shuddered, then shook her hand. "No, we have to be very careful of those things. We'll probably see one coming, but how big were those terminal weapons? A meter, maybe less?"

"Somewhere around there, ma'am," Losius answered, "I'll have the analysis crews get specifics. Also on the blast size, possible detonation methods and the like. I'm not comfortable with the precision of the timing on those blasts."

That confused Szash for a moment, until Gali grunted and said, "Water compression – the fourth blast forced more energy from the first three into the water to increase the effectiveness against the Seed. Gods, they must have a strike like that pre-programmed. Their computer systems are so crude they'd almost have to, to get that sort of effect from four warheads on two vehicles."

"Got 'em," Eri announced, opening a new screen for them, "off the locals' public networks. They're called 'nuclear warheads'. They use combinations of crude explosives and heavy elements to generate an uncontrolled and uncontained fission reaction. The more advanced ones use that to then power an equally uncontrolled and uncontained _fusion_ reaction in hydrogen. Gods, these people are _insane_, General. Even if the firestorm doesn't self-sustain, the side-effects of such a blast… they're scattering poisons across the whole planet every time they use one of those things, the radiation pulse will kill everything within kilometers of the blast, and…" Eri shook her head, "they're insane."

"Which means they may use them against us even over Cairo," Losius said.

"Which is why you're going to find every damned one of them," Szash reminded him, "and destroy them."

"The Conclave may want to study them, find out how they tick," Gali said.

"The warheads apparently come in a lot of sizes," Eri added. "There's a reference here to a 'suitcase nuke', something an individual could carry."

Szash shook her head, "Talk with the Protectors, make sure they're aware of all of this, especially those portable weapons. But we are not, under any circumstances, 'studying' these things. Uncontrolled subatomic reactions? They call us dangerous, then do stupid things like this… Losius, go ahead and get started on that. Eri, start waking the next batch of Seed. Same numbers, but we're going to have to be cagier about deploying them. We can send the London force overland, enough to avoid a repeat of this. The New York force is going to be trickier. Maybe seize a good spot west of the city and put together a field activation facility, or send them across where Africa and South America are close together."

"Maybe penny-packets," Eri muttered, "too small to be worth one of those warheads."

"Gali," Szash continued, "talk to the Protectors, like I said. And while you're at it, get that little traitor child of Yosho's in here. I want her properly interrogated, every last thing she knows."

"Ah, that may be difficult," Gali said. "Yosho has handed her over to his father for training."

"His father?" Szash frowned a moment, digging through her memory, then grimaced, "the Forecasters. Wonderful. Those meddlesome airheads won't let her out of their sight. Do it anyway. If they want someone present, they can arrange it themselves, but that kid knows more about those weapons and where we can find them than we do. Losius, coordinate with Gali on that. Eri, once you and Losius have a good handle on these weapons, put together a briefing for me and the platoon commanders. We're all going to need to be aware of these things. If we get too successful, they may use them on us while we're attacking one of their cities… or one of their enemies' cities."

Eri and Gali left, and Losius closed the screens he had sent her. For a moment, Szash simply sat and stared out her window. The scene was peaceful enough, the tops of Al Hanthis' outer towers, the distant tan of the desert, the painfully blue sky, all of it shining under equatorial sun. Most of what she was seeing, though, was that horrifying mushroom cloud.

"They're insane," she muttered, "all of them."

00000

Author's Note: I'm not entirely positive on the jargon used in the Black Knights scene above, but am comfortable enough with it for this story. I rely mostly on the good Mister Clancy for a lot of it, as well as questioning a Navy pilot I know. HS4 is the Black Knights (or at least, it was the last time I checked on them, and those jet-jockeys trying to claim the name are dirty liars), though it's Pacific Fleet these days, not Atlantic – I took a liberty because I'm partial to the Black Knights.

Regarding the acronyms, it's how Navy pilots talk, though I tried to include the full terminology prior to using the acronyms. ASW is **A**nti-**S**ubmarine **W**arfare. SAR is **S**earch **A**nd **R**escue. CNO is **C**hief of **N**aval **O**perations, the highest ranking Admiral in the Navy (reports directly to the Secretary of Defense, who then reports to the President). The 'collective' is the control stick to the pilot's left (the co-pilot also has one to their left) which is a combination of throttle and altitude control, used for vertical maneuvers and acceleration, and usually mounts a few other controls to keep the pilot's hands on the stick & collective as much as possible.

With the nuclear weapons – I know I do not have the physics and long-range effects quite right, but it's a good approximation, especially with four warheads on simultaneous burst. The use of an airburst to 'suppress' a trio of sub-surface bursts and keep the blasts underwater as much as possible may or may not work on such a scale – I've seen it work on small scale, and the physics makes sense to me. As for Al Hanthis not recognizing them – it's a simple matter of divergent technological evolution. Al Hanthis is perfectly well aware of the physics of fission and fusion, but never had cause to extrapolate the physics into a functional weapon like a nuclear warhead. They had L'Arc en Ciel, what would they need with a nuke?

00000

First up, a general response, since a lot of you twigged to the same comment – Sara recognizing Shamal's name. It's been a very long time since it came up, but way back in Path of Vengeance, when Hayate escaped from the Hellblade and first tried to arrest Kriegsen, she mentioned that Sara 'studied Lost Logia extensively'. Her studies were extensive enough to recognize the name of the one of the Book of Darkness' guardians. Her reaction was included mostly for verisimilitude, rather than relevance.

pfeil: The meeting between Sara and Cidela is complicated, in a lot of ways. Pay attention to what Ahmu is telling Natalia in their scenes. 'Time' for this story is very complicated.

Baughn: Don't worry too much, the temporal effects are secondary. They started as something to explain to my satisfaction how Al Hanthis returned, and figuring out/extending the logic behind that gave me Cidela's current predicament, as well as part of how the entire plot will be resolved. I will say that time is not as vulnerable as you're thinking. As I told pfeil, pay attention to Ahmu's lessons for Natalia, especially later, though I have a couple tricks planned for the two of them that will probably confuse/annoy you further.

Kell Shock: Correction made, thank you! Laura and Nanoha in a workroom are less dangerous than Fate and Nanoha in a workroom, yes, partly because of the lack of rivalry (remember, Laura's willing to see anyone as a 'rival', however fleetingly), but also because Nanoha has a much better idea of what she is doing than Laura. Nanoha's father was sort of 'filling in gaps', though you are right it won't have much direct bearing on the story. Allison is going to have a great deal of difficulty just getting into Al Hanthis, but yes, getting at the shields will be difficult. The scene with Sara was fun to write, largely because it's the first time I've ever actually written her directly. Cid-chan will be getting back, the question is when and what will she do then? As for the next battle, I'm afraid it just got rather decisively delayed, though only a chapter or two. Yes, I know, I'm a horrible tease.

phily: I can't help with the spam filter, but I will say I got some repeat notices of reviews this chapter, and no notice at all of one. I gave Laura the basics of Starlight Breaker for a very specific spell, or actually a set of spells, that is all her, it'll show up soon. Nanoha could build her own bolt drones, the only thing preventing her is style. Including Nanoha's father and siblings is something of a background detail, but was a logical step, given that they would already be familiar with magic thanks to Nanoha. As for Shiro's and Hidan's mutual history, I haven't decided how much to relate in story, but suffice to say they worked together a long time ago. As for the honorifics, it could be either of the things you mentioned, or it could be that Shiro sees Hidan as his equal, while Hidan sees Shiro as 'higher' than him. Also, I've read of some situations where the 'senior' individual is allowed or even expected to be familiar with the 'junior', though I forget the specifics. Kirie's conversation was entirely about the maybe-Allina in Al Hanthis' contacting Niranjana. Either version of Allina has the skills (the set-up is a localized version of one method of hiding a cyber-attack), and the Allina in Al Hanthis has the access. The Allina in Al Hanthis is, technically, a very strong AI, but there's more to her than programming. Your guess about the Seeds' fate was spot on, congratulations:), though Hayate would have a great deal of difficulty doing something similar, since the Seed would be able to largely ignore her heavier strikes. She'd do better than Nanoha or Fate, but not by much. Nukes, without the underlying magical energies to be grounded out, are the most efficient way for dealing with large numbers of Seed. Natalia does have a role to play, but while the Bureau might be willing to give Natalia a chance, they're not who she has to deal with at the moment. The implications are Cidela meeting Sara are complicated and peripheral to the story, so don't worry about them too much, though they will have an impact. I have plans for the Paladins, how they keep each other honest, though as Baughn insists, no human organization is perfect. Willan is similar to Wilhelm in that he's amoral and rather vile, but he has more in common with disconnected bureaucrats than Wilhelm's Knight Templar outlook. Worth keeping an eye on, because he has one more part to play, but not as deliberately personal as Wilhelm is.

hignum: Sara recognized Shamal's name from research. Cidela will get home, the question is when and how. As for romance, there are some characters that I just don't see it being in their personalities, and Signum is a shining example of that, as is Hidan. Both of them are utterly dedicated to Hayate and Noriko, respectively.

Templar Prime: Sara's 'evil genius' line was an old joke in the gamer community, almost word for word, though I've also seen it flipped – "I'm not an evil genius, I'm a mad scientist!" I haven't heard 'Bad Influence', never heard much of Pink's music, nor have I heard any of the Mass Effect sound track. To be honest, the closest I've come to picturing a theme for a new Paladin delivering their oath is Handel's 'Hallelujah Chorus'. Wilhelm was mentioned way back in Path of Vengeance as having been involved in getting Sara's family off Earth and to the Bureau – nothing really ominous in the comment, other than reader knowledge that Wilhelm was going to betray and murder Sara.

Anonymous Reviewer: Not sure who you are, 'cause FFN didn't include any name, but thanks for the review. I'm afraid the prequel is massively stalled – haven't touched it in almost a year, because I can't get any of it to flow right. Laura's take on the Starlight Breaker is a large part of how she will/would destroy the Olympus Mons facility, but she hasn't got it perfected yet.

Nijiru: Laura needs the Starlight Breaker for a specific purpose, and the cumulative effect will still be devastating. Hidan's comment about a 'semi-useful immunity' is a reference to something I've mentioned about him but never shown, the reason why he was sent with Noriko on the Ukraine rescue back in Academy Blues. The Seeds Natalia saw were killed by a pair of Trident II SLBMs each launching a pair of 450kt nominal yield nuclear warheads, which was no doubt close to what you were thinking:). I haven't heard much Welsh music, other than Suo Gan, but I've seen Welsh road signs and matching translations of documents, and good lord is it bad. Almost as bad as Gaelic.


	38. 37 Struggling Together

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-37 – Struggling Together-

Hughes got them a transit point, a store in Kirdasa, on Cairo's western edge. He told them nothing of how it came to be known to the Circles, or how it came to be empty, but Allison figured it had been a Circle mage's business, home, or both, and when Al Hanthis moved in, said mage had fled for less dangerous locales.

Allison was never certain why Hayate-sensei finally relented and let her undertake the first infiltration mission, especially not after Vita told her, at the overlook above the school's valley just as she was about to leave, that they had to take the usual trace spells and teleport lock off her. She knew she had performed well in the series of stealth tests and training, but so had Fate and one of the Volunteers, Morris, had been very close, close enough Allison thought her status as a student would put her behind them in the running. But four days before the US nuked the Atlantic, Hayate-sensei had told her she would be going, with Fate, Nanoha, and Takashi on stand-by.

After that had come a solid week of dedicated training, not interrupted even for the Americans' response to Al Hanthis' Seed. Vita or Signum-sensei was pushing her from dawn to dusk and beyond, mostly practicing on and around the campus, but also infiltrating several known Circle bases that had been warned of her coming. The most frightening of those had been against one of the new Black Dog teams, who had apparently _not_ been informed of her presence in their assault exercise. The leader, Arlain, had taken it in stride, but Allison had been fairly sure some of his men had been about to shoot her once she 'scored' by tagging him with a thrown paintball.

The geography training – such as it was – covering everything they could map about Al Hanthis had been less thrilling, but more interesting. The city was built weird, to her eyes, with little to nothing in the way of 'streets' as she knew them, but small vehicle monorails that spiraled around buildings and leapt across gaps in a seemingly random array. The city was not so much built on levels, as formed into two shallow cones joined at the base, different towers merging at differing levels, each with differing heights, all built up over the main platform. The only regularity was the main platform itself, and the easily distinguished towers of the shield generators and the sparking crowns of the power generators. Those were her initial targets, finding out everything she could about the two types of generators' structures and security. The biggest problem with that objective, oddly enough, was not the unknown security, but the fact that they had no idea where the portal she would be using let out.

The actual infiltration plan was fairly convoluted, and seriously lacking in details on her escape route. Allison would use Takashi's teleport to the abandoned store Hughes provided. From there, she would walk about ten kilometers, getting as close to the Cairo airport as she could get, trying to blend in along the way. Only when she started running into serious Al Hanthis security would she back off, slip into the Cloak, and then ghost into the airport. She would get close to the portals and, when one opened for something going to Al Hanthis, she would dive through, hopefully just ahead of the cargo. From there the permutations and situational modifications multiplied with dizzying speed, depending on a frightening number of unknowns.

She had asked Yussef, in some of her limited free time during the preceding week, about walking through Cairo unnoticed. "You've got roughly the right skin color," he told her, "at least for someplace as old, over-populated, and international as Cairo, but your facial structure is all wrong, and your hair will stick out like the ditz on a rampage. Also, I seriously doubt anyone here has any clothes that would blend into the background in Cairo. Western clothes are fine, acceptable for tourists, but they attract attention, especially the areas you're going to be moving through initially. My suggestion? Get the drabbest, baggiest clothes you can find, and get a shawl, wrap it around your hair and your face, just leave your eyes uncovered. Egyptians still aren't all that insistent about women covering up, but enough women cover their faces that no one will notice. Manage that, and all you'll have to worry about is getting harassed for being a woman walking about alone, which you can probably handle quietly yourself."

The two Cairo experts Hughes had sent over – one American Allison suspected was CIA, and one Egyptian Circle mage who had been in the battle of Cairo – had basically confirmed Yussef's opinion, though both had been a little more specific. Allison had managed that, finding brown slacks and a loose beige blouse. Mercedes had produced a long wide white scarf that functioned well enough as a head-wrap. To Allison's surprise, Shamal had given her a long loose skirt, which would work better than the pants to blend in, and told her not to worry about bringing it back – it had been Cid-chan's, from before Shamal adopted her, a reminder of Cid-chan's life before. Allison almost could not bring herself to wear it. The outfit would not stand up to steady scrutiny, especially not by an Egyptian, but it should suffice for the Guard and Protectors.

The best part of the preparations, though, the part she was most looking forward to, was a small package Noriko had presented her with – thirty coins, every one of them silvery and polished bright, every one of them Russian. There was a note in it as well, from Natalia's grandmother, though no one had opened it before rolling it around the leather tube of coins and wrapping the whole thing in paper and string-ties. Allison was looking forward to seeing Natalia's face again, seeing the look on her face when she recognized the 'present'. It would be her own personal bit of vengeance, before letting Laura go on her hunt.

The day of the infiltration attempt Allison was extremely nervous, but once she was in the shop, she managed to calm down, mission-focus overcoming worries. It was do-or-die time, and worries took second-place to reviewing her contingency plans. Getting out of the store was simple enough, the back door let out onto a deserted alley just as advertised. From there, white scarf pulled carefully across her nose and mouth, Allison did her best to blend in with the foot traffic.

Despite her ragged heartbeat and paranoid attempts to watch everything around her at once, blending in proved simple. The crowds were thinner than she had expected, thinner than Yussef and Hughes' experts had warned her to expect. The traffic on the streets was even thinner, lending credence to the media reports of Cairo's population fleeing Al Hanthis' rule, as well as to reports of Al Hanthis' willingness to let people leave. The walk wound up taking three hours, as she had to find ways around two checkpoints and across the Nile.

Aside from the checkpoints, she saw Al Hantheans four times, three pairs of Protectors apparently on foot-patrol, and one Guard mage passing by overhead. Logically, she had more to fear from the Protectors, who, it was reported, had almost completely assumed control of Cairo's security, and were already incorporating the Cairo police. But she passed the Protector patrols without qualm, only to deliberately hide from the Guard mage. Her opinion of the Protectors was shaped by those Hayate-sensei had captured while attempting to defend Cairo, and she did not consider them an active threat, just something to avoid stumbling over. The Guard, however, had proven very dangerous over Hong Kong, and Allison had no desire to test them again under these circumstances.

Once she reached the airport, things became more interesting. While there were several smaller airports around Cairo, and those remained officially open to all regularly scheduled flights, the main airport had been shut down, its flights rerouted or canceled, and taken over by the Guard and Protectors. It had become Al-Hanthis central ground-station, with all traffic in and out of the city routed through it, except for the Seed. The only open gates and building entrances were covered by at least one Protector each, and there were already rudimentary ward structures up along the perimeter.

Allison dropped back a few buildings, behind an apparently unused warehouse. Once there, she woke Gallóglaigh, and brought up her armor. It felt strangely good to be back in her leathers, long knife in hand, but she moved immediately. Slight as it had been, an alert Protector or Guard could have detected the device waking and bringing up her barrier jacket, so she ghosted further around the building, flipping up the hood and pulling the tightly-woven netting up over her nose even as she vanished into the Cloak.

She took the fence at a run, trusting in her Cloak to get her past the wards. A little bit of a boost just when she jumped let her clear the fence, flipping once to make sure, and she landed in a crouch. Thirty seconds she waited there, watching, looking for any sign of a response or the wards triggering. When nothing happened, when there was no sign of incoming Guard or Protectors, she moved on, carefully.

It took her another hour to reach the portals, cautious movement punctuated by frequent pauses. There was less activity than the airport was designed for, but more activity than Allison was comfortable with, even in the now noon-time heat. Here, unlike in the city proper, she could see a large number of Al Hantheans who were not in Guard or Protector uniforms, civilians of various types, even a few native Egyptians. Any of them were too many for her comfort, though they showed no signs of noticing her presence.

Luck was with her when she reached the portals, as well. Of the now four installations set up, three were active and set up with shipments going in. Two were set up with a sort of conveyer system floating small crates through, while the third was sending through larger crates lifted one by one by a trio of mages. All of them, even the larger ones, were marked with various food labels, fruits and vegetables and the like, though some of the largest crates appeared to contain live plants.

The arrangement of portals had been altered slightly, with the four portals shifted to stand back to back in a square, so she could not approach them from an unoccupied rear. Instead, she maneuvered carefully amongst the floating and moving crates, carefully avoided the cargo-handlers loading crates into their queues, and the Protectors guarding each portal, then paused. She chose the portal handling the largest cargo, as it had the greatest pauses between transits, and thus the most time for her to get through. She could not see through it, though it appeared to be just a coruscating white field.

Things went wrong the instant she hit the threshold. There was a twisting, stretching sensation, then a flash of pain and shift in the pull. She flubbed her landing when the portal spit her out at an odd angle, tumbling and fetching up hard against a wall, and almost panicked as her Cloak and Leathers failed, leaving her momentarily exposed and vulnerable. She got both back up in under three seconds, but was still trapped.

The room was solidly walled, plain metal fronted by some fairly basic shields. They were not up to work-room levels, but tough enough to contain her for a few minutes, especially given her general issues with shields. Unlike Noah, she could not get a handle on a shield and find its weak points just from touching it, she would have to beat her way through them. The shields also did not incorporate any sort of teleport barrier, and were not strong enough to function as one themselves. She could sense such a barrier, weakly, but it was some distance from her. She found the door readily enough, as well as several points where she thought there were monitoring systems, but all were solidly behind the shields. So she focused on remaining as invisible as possible, drawing Gallóglaigh just in case, checking the cartridges stored in covered loops on her belt.

It was two minutes before someone started talking, beginning with Al Hanthean, then switching after a second to Arabic, then English, then scaling through more languages. They all said the same thing, and Allison thought it might be recorded, "Lay down any weapons, do not utilize any magic. You are under arrest for illegal entry of the city. Resistance will result in charges of espionage, which could result in your execution. Cooperate, and you will be well and fairly treated."

_Yeah, well and fairly treated,_ she mentally muttered, _just like the damn English._

It was another twenty minutes and two repetitions of the message cycling through the same languages, before something else happened. The door opened, revealing a Protector in his uniform, behind a personal shield. He looked around with a frown, just short of glaring, and said in Arabic, "You may as well come out. You can't get out of here, and eventually we will simply gas the chamber, knock you out, and you will be questioned and tried despite your resistance."

Allison almost laughed at that, but managed to contain herself. Instead, she ghosted closer, inspecting the Protector's shield as best she could, debating if she could blast her way through both room and personal shields, or through the room's shield and the wall. She would have to be fast, though, and something told her the Protector was prepared for that, expecting such an attack. So as he continued demanding her surrender, then that she reveal herself, she backed up across the room, preparing to wait for him to come in after her.

"So," he eventually wound down, "What do you say? Why not make it easy on yourself?"

An idea occurred to her, remembering the difficulty getting to grips with the Guard at Hong Kong, and how Toushiro had solved it. "What do I have to say?" She chuckled in anticipation, forming the spell carefully, doubting a normal teleport would work, but wondering… "I say… Hail Mary, full of grace."

He looked confused for a moment, then his eyes locked on her location as reality tore asunder behind her, and she leapt backwards, spinning as she moved. It was just as chilling as it had been every time she tried it, leaving her feeling like she had just walked over the South Pole, but it worked, beautifully. She came out of the nothingness behind him, even as he lunged forward to try… something that was probably futile and stupid. Gallóglaigh whipped around, cartridge discharging, and Allison poured all the energy into the blade.

Gallóglaigh crashed through his shield, and just like the Guard/Protectors over Cairo, he had no barrier jacket beneath it. The blade shed most of its energy on his shield, but still sliced his back from shoulder to hip, making him scream in pain, Gallóglaigh resetting for the thrust. Then Allison's free left hand latched onto the back of his head and she hit him with a spell Yuuno-sensei had taught them within days of his arrival, "Struggle Bind."

For a second, panting from the adrenalin, Allison stood over the fallen mage, eyes wide. She was partly surprised at her victory, but mostly surprised at how quickly she had gone for the kill. It was a toss up, in her mind, which instinct she would have followed through on, the binding she used, or the equally easy thrust from the rear. Gallóglaigh had been perfectly placed, after that slash, for an upward thrust between the third and fourth ribs on the left. Only the fact that continuing the slash's rotation brought her left hand around for the binding decided her, and that had been instinct.

"Laura may be on to something," she muttered, "she just might be on to something."

Then the alarms started screaming, and training took over again. She was still wrapped in the Cloak of Shades, and picked a direction at random to head down the hall outside the capture chamber. A cautious bit of probing showed the oddly structure teleport barrier she had sensed earlier completely enclosed her. As she teased out the details, part of her admired it as it allowed incoming teleports without interference, but blocked all those heading 'out'. _Probably to keep it from interfering with the portals,_ she decided, _which reasoning doesn't help me find a way out. Look for a door out, then find a matching wall with an air vent or something._

00000

Fort Knox was not what Yussef expected, not at all. He knew it was more than just a gold repository, but he also knew it as the US Army's Armor School, where tanks were tested and refit, and tankers were trained. He expected armories, tanks, shooting ranges, maneuver ranges, and a never-ending scent of gunpowder and jet fuel.

What he got instead was freezing gusts of wind, damp air, and a leaden sky, all of which made him glad of his armor. They appeared on a parade ground surrounded by barracks buildings, instead of the lawn by the main gate as he had planned. When the teleport cleared from around himself, Marcel, Toushiro, and Maunders, there were also a number of rather surprised looking men in uniform, most aiming a variety of side-arms at them, which made him very glad of Zulfiqar's weight on his back. Marcel and Toushiro, also in their armor with their devices slung, brought up shields around the four of them, and things paused there, though Yussef began to regret that Vita and Zafira were both busy making the rounds of the nuclear powers with Hayate-sensei.

Turning slightly to his left, Yussef asked, "You _did_ tell them we were coming, didn't you?"

Maunders grunted once, then said, "Damn right I did – to the _main gate_. You don't just walk onto a military reservation, Al Khan, there are procedures."

"You gave me the coordinates," Yussef reminded her, scanning the crowd. He had a passing familiarity with US rank insignia, but Maunders found the ranking officer first.

"Left, eight-thirty," she told him, "tall brown-haired man in fatigues, Major."

Yussef nodded to her, found the man, and walked to the edge of the shield. "Boys, relax, but slowly. Fade the shields out."

Marcel was a little slower about it than Toushiro, but both lowered their shields. All three of them kept an eye on the soldiers surrounding them, hoping they would lower their weapons, but had no such luck. So he stood his ground until the shields faded completely, then saluted the officer, "Major, my apologies for our arrival, I'm afraid my teleport was a bit off. Would you or some of your men be available to escort us to the main gate?"

The major frowned at him a moment, then glanced at Maunders. "Sergeant?"

Maunders stepped up next to him, "We had teleport coordinates for the main gate, sir, but I understand it's not uncommon to be off. Colonel Walsh is expecting us over at the SOG."

The Major's frown shifted, going from confused to distasteful, "The Mutts. Sergeant Keiler, take your squad and escort Sergeant Maunders here and her guests over to Colonel Walsh's office, please."

'Keiler' and nine other men formed out of the crowd, which slowly dissipated. Yussef did not recognize any of the buildings they passed beyond the generic – barracks, offices, and so forth – but he got the distinct impression Keiler was taking them a long way around. Keiler and his men were also rather short on conversation, watching them more then the area around them, and Keiler 'showed them the way' from behind Yussef. The escort was almost as cold as the weather.

At one point Toushiro asked mentally, _'Gee, was it something I said?'_

Yussef almost laughed, but managed to turn it into a cough. Marcel just rolled his eyes, _'No, Shiro, it was our fearless leader and his notoriously poor aim.'_

_'I'll have you know my aim is just fine, thank you,'_ Yussef replied.

"If you three don't mind," Maunders hissed at him, "that is just as rude as conversing in a foreign language in front of a host. Talk or keep it to yourself."

Their escort collectively gave her a strange look, while Yussef settled for copying Hayate-sensei's raised eyebrow. "Telepathy in hostile circumstances is a habit, and a good one. To be honest, I'm surprised you Circle mages don't use it. It's far more convenient and secure than the radios you all lug about."

"We don't use machines," Maunders shot back.

"You do now," Toushiro reminded her, earning himself a flat stare. He considered Maunders' look for a minute, then grinned and shrugged, "Signum-sensei does that better, but I guess that's why you're at the school, right?"

"Toushiro, that's enough," Yussef told him. "As for using machines, Sergeant, telepathy doesn't. Almost all of us were capable of it before we activated our devices."

Maunders shook her head, "It's still related, all of it. Yagami doesn't teach you safe forms of magic then throw the machines in on top of it, she teaches you all of it as a whole. That's the way things should be taught, but it means it's all part and parcel."

Yussef shrugged, "I won't object to a tactical advantage over the Revenants, but you're going to have to get over that."

"We're here," Keiler interrupted, "wait out here while I inform the Colonel."

'Out here' was a government-standard waiting room, AC unit silent in one window, a vague semblance of heat, beat-up old chairs in various shades of brown, and an empty desk by the door leading further in. Yussef considered it a moment, then shrugged, and directed Marcel and Toushiro with a pair of gestures. Marcel took up station by the door they entered by, Toushiro by the windows looking over another office building. Yussef took the wall opposite Colonel Walsh's office, and told Maunders, "If you object so to our use of telepathy to hold private conversations, I suggest you learn how to listen in on them. If you figure out how, feel free to share. Given that we are on foreign soil, with our presence here of questionable legality, and we're surrounded by Circle mages… you'll have to excuse our little slips."

Toushiro asked, _'Boss, you do realize we can eavesdrop on telepathy, right? We've done it to you, often enough.'_

_ 'Yup,'_ Yussef answered, _'but she doesn't know that. If they think they've got an advantage, they're less likely to go looking for another one. Pass the word to the boys, though, try not to let any of the lambs know we can do it.'_ 'Lambs' was the unofficial nickname Laura had pegged Maunders and her fellow Circle students with, short for 'sacrificial lambs', which all of the students figured the Circle students were. What they were being sacrificed for and why was up for debate, though.

Colonel Walsh kept them waiting a good half hour. Three Dogs arrived in that time, taking up their own waiting postures in a group watching Yussef. He recognized Arlain, Mahmoud, and Bogdanovich, from both Hong Kong and the failed Shanghai raid. None of them said a word, merely nodded a greeting to Maunders and took to staring at Yussef. Yussef stared right back, confident that the Dogs, at least, were no threat. _Not until after Al Hanthis is dealt with, at least,_ he reminded himself.

The interesting thing about the Dogs, though, was that they were in uniforms. Field fatigues, yes, but not US or British, and the markings were not any service Yussef recognized. The fatigues were standard green and brown European colors, cut loose as always, festooned with pockets. They had no national flags, but each sported a name tag and unit patch – a black silhouette of three different canines, each with a Roman number in red on it.

When Walsh finally did have his aide send them in, Yussef's initial impression was 'unimpressed'. Walsh was fit enough to meet military requirements, if a little on the short side, but had the sort of softness Yussef associated with talkers, not soldiers. Watching the Dogs, and especially Maunders, as introductions were traded around, Yussef decided he was right, and Walsh was a paper-pusher in uniform.

Once introductions were done, Walsh got right to business, "Maunders, you said something about a strike plan for us to review?"

"More of an operational concept, sir," Maunders replied, "and it's not mine, it's his." She gestured at Yussef, who Walsh glanced at and then ignored. "I mentioned it to Arlain, and he expressed an interest in seeing the plan, so I scheduled this meeting. It's Al Khan's show, though."

Everyone turned to Yussef, and he shrugged, "I have a briefing planned out, gentlemen, but thought there would be more room – a briefing room, or an exercise field. Do you want to do this here?"

"We'll start here," Walsh said, "then move somewhere appropriate if your ideas warrant it."

Yussef nodded, then reached back and hefted Zulfiqar off his back. Setting the blade to floating in the air, a mental command brought up a smaller version of the holographic Al Hanthis he and the Myrmidons had been using for planning. "The simple fact is, this war revolves around Al Hanthis," he said. "However quickly they may be bringing North Africa to heel – and those poor bastards in the Cote d'Ivoire are proving they _will_ bring it to heel – their power rests entirely on the city itself. So long as they can retreat within its shield, they are untouchable. So long as we cannot get through that shield, they can re-supply and reinforce at will. If we can take Al Hanthis the entire situation transforms from a war to a debate over who gets to oversee dismantling the city. If we can even seriously damage the city, they'll be forced to the negotiating table, and we can stop the fighting.

"The problem is how to damage the city without setting off the very cataclysm we're all terrified of. We have a small number of options for bringing the shield down, but they all involve unacceptable costs and or risks, mostly risks of a cascade dimensional dislocation. Everything destructive we've thought up carries inherent risk of such a cascade, given how many Lost Logia they have floating about in the city."

"If you're worried about nukes," Arlain began, but Yussef cut him off with a gesture.

"Nukes, tactical and strategic both, are now useless against Al Hanthis, unless they make another over-the-horizon attack, which London and New York will only qualify for in the final stages. If the US or UK wants to nuke their own city," he shrugged, "that's their option, but I'd recommend against it. Using nukes against Al Hanthis itself, while they would have a good chance of bringing down the shield, and a lesser chance of destroying the city without triggering a cascading dimensional dislocation, won't work. By now, thanks largely to the strike your Navy just made, Al Hanthis will have anti-missile defenses in place, and it is simply impossible to get a warhead close enough to the city to detonate, not using conventional means."

Walsh glared at him, "There's no way they could put together an ABMS this fast."

Yussef met Walsh's glare with one of his father's 'friendly' smiles – just friendly enough to make the contempt obvious. "They have an entire city floating in the air, Colonel. A _city_, and not a small one. One ringed with weapons emplacements. The largest is similar to the one used to first attack them after their arrival. The Bureau has records of similar weapons, they are one of the few forms of Lost Logia that is considered stable enough for general use – Class Four, Restricted. Non-Bureau governments are allowed to maintain small numbers as defensive weapons. Marcel?"

"The Saires Cannon," Marcel replied, a gesture bringing up a holographic representation of the weapon. "Masses one point five metric tons, in a frame four meters by two by two. Power demands are relatively low for the output, it is a very efficient weapon. Standard setting is one to five mega-joules delivered in a one-second beam. Rate of fire at that setting is fifty shots per minute. Range is visual out to five light-seconds, with accuracy of one meter per light-second, mostly due to gravitational and atmospheric effects on the beam. Accuracy in a purely space-borne engagement is one meter per two light-seconds, given standard targeting and compensation programming. Al Hanthis has at least fifty such weapons emplaced around the city's perimeter, and several buildings have doors or hatches significantly smaller their observed vehicles, which may conceal further weapons. They also have four to five hundred smaller fixed weapons we have not yet been able to identify, most co-located with the Saires cannons."

"Ballistic missiles, for all their speed and power, are actually rather slow weapons, Colonel," Yussef said. "Given the vagaries of targeting and guidance software, and the limitations of a ballistic flight path, you're looking at a minimum of fifteen to twenty minutes from launch to impact, and your missiles would be over the horizon for most of that. Bombers would be worse, once Al Hanthis learned to recognize them, and trust me, they're learning right now. Cruise missiles would be moderately more survivable, but we're still talking fractions of a percent chance of success."

Walsh huffed and leaned back, crossing his arms, "Can't say I'm surprised, you following in your teacher's footsteps."

Yussef shook his head, "Actually, Hayate-sensei and I disagree on the use of nuclear arms. She refuses to consider them at all. I refuse to use them stupidly. They're not the only weapon available, and to be honest, they're not entirely practical for this war. Oh, if Al Hanthis were as fanatical as the Revenants and pursuing a scorched-earth conquest policy, sure, I'd be falling all over myself to find a way to slip a few megaton-range warheads through that shield. As it is, though…" he shrugged.

Toushiro picked up, "We have two scenarios thought out for using tactical nukes. The first one we came up with is very risky, but if we can mitigate those risks, it's worth a shot. We may be able to slip someone or something through the shield on a one-way basis that may or may not be survivable for a human. A classmate has a method of drawing physical objects to her without transiting the space between, something that bypasses traditional teleport barriers. If she can figure out how to send something, and if it'll pass through that shield, we plan to plant a few bombs around the shield generators, try to bring enough of it down to allow a strike force in.

"The second is less pleasant, a forlorn hope tactic. Our most likely method of cracking the shield without destroying the planet would only be open briefly, long enough for one or two mages to dash through. Alternatively, we may be able to slip someone in through the portals they use to bring in supplies. This individual could theoretically take a nuke through with them, but it would be a one-way trip."

"It would also carry a high risk of causing a cascade dislocation, as would the first option, given our present knowledge of Al Hanthis' construction," Marcel added. "Neither is considered a high-probability mission, but if it is the only way to prevent an Al Hanthis victory, and the Bureau still refuses to intervene, we may consider it. Though, as Yussef mentioned, either scenario would require a way to gain Hayate-sensei's approval."

"Nukes have a place, but they're not the ideal weapon for this war," Yussef said. "It's too difficult to control them, they're too inflexible and indiscriminate. The Al Hantheans have committed enough atrocities, we don't need to commit any of our own unless we've exhausted all other options first. A mage strike, however, is very flexible, very controllable, and much more likely to give us a victory we can live with. Those are what most of our scenarios are built around, and what Maunders thinks you gentlemen can help me plan."

Yussef and the Myrmidons had hashed out variation upon variation of the original scenario he had given them just after Hong Kong. Most were some variation on the original – a variable number of mages got through the shield at a random point, and what they could best do to maximize their effectiveness before the Guard took them down. Yussef himself was partial to one of the more complicated plans, a variation on the New Delhi strike from the previous year.

To Yussef's surprise, once he began the actual briefing, the hostility from the Dogs and Walsh faded. It did not disappear completely, but it retreated thoroughly into the background. It took him a while to recognize what it was, given how rarely he had been on this end of a briefing and how close he and his Myrmidons were. These were professional soldiers studying a tactical problem, and it showed in their attention, the notes they took, and the questions they asked between each scenario.

When he wound down an hour and a half later, there was some shifting, then Walsh spoke first. "The biggest problem I see is still the shield. Your plans all rely on being able to create an opening in the shield to insert a strike force, then using that strike force to open a larger more permanent hole. But nothing talks of how to get through the shield."

"That is our largest hurdle," Marcel said, "and if we had a way around it, a way to get a serious strike force through, we would have gone in already. Takashi is working on it now that he is no longer keeping an eye on the Dogs, and so are several of our classmates and the Volunteers."

"We're aware of the limitation," Yussef said, "but we're also aware that someone has to have a plan for what to do once we can create an opening in that shield. One of my biggest objections to the Revenants initial strike on Al Hanthis, aside from the fact that they did it, was their complete lack of follow-through. They had nothing in place to either follow-up a successful strike, or mitigate they failure they got. I do not want us to be in the same position."

"You're not going to have enough people to do anything," Arlain said, shaking his head. "Oh, a small strike force like Hayate's crew – you, your teachers, the Volunteers, Maunders' fellow dark-siders – you could do some damage, but not enough before they swarmed you under. Just the Guard mages we've seen could match you for numbers, and there have to be more Guard, if they're seriously planning to hit two cities at once."

Toushiro snorted, "Yeah, but where do we find those mages? Wolfpacks won't have the range. We'd have to infiltrate the generating circles into Cairo to have them close enough to let the focus mages affect the battle, and once the opening in the shield was closed, those focus mages would be cut off from the wolfpack, leaving a bunch of unenhanced Circle mages. No offense, but there is no way individual Circle mages would be effective."

"Individual Circle mages," Mahmoud said wonderingly, "or individual _Dogs_?"

Arlain and Bogdanovich frowned at him, then after a second the frowns cleared and they nodded slowly. Walsh frowned as well, asking, "Would one platoon make a difference, even over-strength? I wasn't aware Hughes was going to start more than your eight squads."

"He's not," Arlain said, "but half of what makes us Black Dogs is not our magic, it's the ammo and the tactics."

"Tactics which conventional militaries already use," Bogdanovich added, "Spteznaz, SEALS, SAS."

"Still not enough," Arlain shook his head, "not to take an entire city, not even if we got every team, squad, and company in the world, which we wouldn't. Hell, half the SAS is on its way to the Congo now, looking to infiltrate north into conquered territory, and I hear the SEALS are doing the same."

"Would they have to be special forces," Yussef asked, "or could regular formations do? How much of this ammo of yours can you produce, and in what calibers?"

Arlain shrugged, "Hughes is still setting something up to mass-produce the ammo, but you'd have to ask him. As for calibers, any NATO standard, so far as I know."

"The Master that came up with the current version of the technique is setting up in one of the Army munitions plants," Maunders told him. "Last I heard a week ago, he had doubled his previous production, but was uncertain of increasing further. It requires an active mage at some specific spots in the process, and he's having staffing issues. I'll find out."

"Conventional forces, the Dogs ammo, that's fine," Yussef said, "but which forces, and how do we get them in there?"

They all stared at the hologram of the city for a time, then Arlain shook his head, "No armor, not in there. There might be corridors big enough, but any tanks we brought in would probably just get stuck in those parks. Sitting ducks, too."

"Infantry," Bogdanovich agreed, "Paratroopers, probably. Those lunatics are used to being cut off from support and fighting in close quarters with light weapons."

"Lunatics?" Mahmoud backhanded the Russian lightly on the shoulder, "You've got more jumps than anyone else in the Dogs, Ivan, including more combat jumps."

Bogdanovich waved that off, "Bah, I am Spetznaz, not a paratrooper. Those boys are lunatics. Me, I am simply efficient in reaching my assigned objectives."

"Paras would be good," Arlain said, "but I'd honestly have to say Marines, US or British, maybe both."

"Russian Marines are just as good," Bogdanovich protested. "Better, even, less boasting and preening."

Walsh shook his head, "Russians won't fly, not after that statement the other day." At Bogdanovich's frown he held up a hand, "What did the Premier say, Bogdanovich? Nothing, a whole boat-load of _nothing_. Some comments about 'all parties exercising restraint' and 'proper legal and diplomatic channels', and the usual diplomatic vapors. I haven't heard a public statement that meaningless since the State Department's last press conference on UN corruption. Add on top of that, what has been Russia's sole presence in this war to date?" He pointed at Yussef, then Marcel and Toushiro.

"The Russian," Yussef agreed, not snarling but still shifting the term into a curse.

"Do _not_ call her that," Bogdanovich snapped back. "She is a traitor and a heretic twice over, she is _not_ Russian."

Yussef nodded, "Sorry, but that's what Walsh meant. So far, Russia has been quiet, even about the Atlantic. The only thing 'Russian' anyone knows about is a traitor. Russian marines might help counter-balance that, but that would be something for higher-ups to decide if this ever becomes an actual ops plan."

"It will be by this time tomorrow," Walsh said. "Like you said, kid, strikes like this don't just happen. This is going to take serious planning at every level – where to train, who to train, when to go, what to bring, how to get it there, how to get it out if things go south…"

"The Chinese," Mahmoud said. "Their paratroopers are good, and they'll be all for getting some of their own back for Hong Kong."

Yussef considered that for a few moments, then nodded, "Colonel, if you've got someplace to put us up for the night, transferring everything I've got with me to your planning people will probably take the rest of the day and into tomorrow. You'll also need someone familiar with device-mage tactics for the planning, which would be the three of us. If Hayate-sensei agrees, would it be acceptable for us to remain here for a day or two?"

00000

Szash looked up when a chuckling Eri strolled into her office, and frowned. "What's got you in a good mood?"

Eri waved a data-pad, "Egg on the Lord Protector's face."

That perked Szash up – Yosho had been getting pushy in the Conclave in the few days since the loss of the Seed bound for New York and London. He had positioned himself as the 'voice of reason' in the debates over what to do now. He was most helpful on allocating resources to replace the lost Seed, and increasing their production priority enough to activate the larger, long-mothballed, main production facility, but had been pushing for an immediate expansion of the assault plan. That positioning, typical as it was of him, had put him in position to seriously needle her. He had not come out directly against any of her plans or suggestions, precisely, had even supported her resource requests, but he was plainly setting himself up to cut her off at the knees in the near future. Anything that embarrassed him, or even just let her have a laugh at his expense, was welcome.

"What happened?"

"Well, it's actually worrisome news," Eri admitted, "but it does include the fact that the Protectors screwed up by the numbers. There was an unauthorized transit through the Cairo portals shortly after noon today. The ground crew saw nothing and no one, but the detectors picked up the energy spike from an unscheduled transit, and automatically re-routed into one of the Protectors' secure receiving bays. They even got a few seconds of imagery of the intruder, a teenage girl that matches one of Hayate's students, who promptly disappeared again."

"Ohhh, that's not good," Szash said, humor fading as she leaned back, "the Caeghlin girl, right? Was she carrying anything?"

Eri nodded, "It was probably Caeghlin, yes, though the Protectors obviously don't know we know that. I only have a limited report, but it did not mention her carrying anything, and the one still image I have of her she does not appear to be carrying anything. She certainly was not carrying something bulky enough to be one of those warheads. Thing is, the Protector who had the duty decided he could handle one little girl all by his lonesome, and went down to talk her into surrendering."

Szash flinched at that, picturing the likely result. The Protectors, for all their pride and skill at law enforcement, were not really combatants, and once in the Void had not kept up what little combat training they had during the war. There had been precious few violent crimes in the city even before the rebels kicked off their civil war, and no one had resisted arrest – not seriously – since the city was lost in the Void. None of the Protectors who were not Guard had done anything to rectify that lack since the city returned to Homeworld, and Szash had deliberately gotten rid of most of those in Cairo. One of Hayate's child-soldiers would make mincemeat out of a lone Protector, especially someone low-ranked enough to be on routine guard duty. "Would it be gloating too much if we send a representative to his funeral?"

"He's not dead. She hurt him, though I haven't found out how badly yet, and left him in some sort of nullification binding spell, then vanished. Our estimates of her ability to disappear are off, by the way. We've had exactly one standard sensor pick her up – the detectors on the portal. I will say this, though… she's just as insane as the rest of them. She bypassed the secure receiving bay's shields by the simple expedient of teleporting out of the bay."

"Teleporting? Where too?" Szash blinked, eyes widening as one incredibly stupid possibility occurred to her, "don't tell me that idiot deactivated the containment center's shielding?"

Eri shook her head, "Caeghlin only went about eight meters, from inside the bay to the hallway outside. Used a strange one, too, from what my sources say, though again I don't have details on it yet."

Szash shuddered at that, visceral reaction making her skin crawl. Teleports below a range of about a kilometer became less and less accurate, as the initial and terminal points interfered with one another, with some horrific results possible. Teleporting eight meters was not _necessarily_ a death sentence, but there were worse things than death. "Keep that in mind," Szash said, "if they're insane enough to do that in combat, or if they've got some sort of teleport that mitigates the close-range interference to make it safe for them, we're going to have to figure out how to do it ourselves, or how to counter it."

Eri nodded, and made a note on her pad. "Personally, I think they've found a way around the interference. Like I said, the girl apparently used a strange form of teleport, which I'm trying to get details on. Though I may have Galli ask, since he's working with that Protector Journeywoman on the subtle knife. Basically, they've surprised me enough times that I'm willing to bet on skill over insanity, at least among their mages."

"True enough. Get what you can on the new intrusion," Szash told her, "officially and unofficially. Any requests for assistance in tracking the intruder down?"

"Not the new one, no, just the subtle knife that commandeered the comms. It's early, though, she only just arrived in the city today, and Yosho may still think he has her contained in the tower."

"Likelihood of that?"

"Low," Eri estimated. "Caeghlin is an expert at stealth and stalking. Between the initial reports of this intrusion and Kriegsen's information, I would say she can give a Ghost a run for her money. If she's not out of the Tower already, she will be by sundown. There's too much traffic in and out of the Tower, and you know how the construction of these larger towers are. More holes than a fishing net."

"You've never even seen a fishing net," Szash complained.

"Neither have you, Ma'am," Eri said with a grin. "Analogy still works, though. She's out, poking around, looking for trouble to get in to. That's what worries me, to be honest. She can't be here for a strike, there's no way they have information on the city that detailed. She's here for one of two things, maybe both: Morisovitch, and recon."

"I'd bet on both," Szash said, leaning back in her chair and turning it over. "There's not much we can do about it, but pass an alert to all Guard – Caeghlin's description, our estimates of her capabilities, and orders to engage only with numerical superiority. Classify her as a Ghost Adept, and remind everyone that numerical superiority means just that – anyone who spots her is only to engage if there's someone else with them and she's alone. Pass on that the Protectors already have one casualty due to overconfidence, and remind everyone about the trouble we had at Hong Kong.

"While you're doing that, have Losius look into securing this tower. I don't want her sneaking out of the Protector's bailiwick and then causing some chaos in mine. Visual access only, I think, something that makes sure we can see everyone who enters the tower."

"If we pass on her description, Yosho will hear about it," Eri cautioned. "The initial alert doesn't have a description in them, I only ID'd her from a picture one of my people slipped me. He'll figure out we've got his info on Hayate."

"Probably." Szash shrugged, "he'll probably even realize we have the same data he does. But the question he will be left with is, how did we get it? Kriegsen? An agent of ours among the Protectors? A source among the locals? He'll spend at least some time chasing his own tail trying to find out, especially with this embarrassment to deal with. Also… very quietly, if you please, make sure that certain members of the Conclave become aware of the infiltration. Emphasize how successful it was, and how easy it would be for Caeghlin to bring in something like one of those warheads."

"We don't have the manpower to guard the portals," Eri said, "not if we're going to attack London and New York simultaneously and go after the Middle East."

"No, but we can make sure Yosho actually does guard them, and a little pressure on him in the Conclave will get him to back off his pressure on us. And if he brings up the question of where we got our information," Szash smiled in anticipation, "well, I'm sure mister Kriegsen is getting lonely up there in his penthouse."

00000

Laura stopped the twins with a hand on their shoulders, ignoring the gathered students, teachers, and Volunteers. Almost everyone had accepted Hayate-sensei's invitation to this particular class, turning what was becoming a school tradition into a full-blown ceremony. The only ones missing were the quartet off in America, Tai-Yu-sensei who preferred to take the watch, and the Circle Lambs (who had pointedly _not_ been invited). Even the teachers out talking to various militaries had made it back for this.

Laura ignored all of them, however, as Saeryn and Rhys turned to give her a matching questioning look. She studied each face for a moment, then asked, "You two sure you're ready for this? We went kind of fast, especially this last month."

Saeryn frowned at her, "We are ready."

"More than ready," Rhys agreed, equally insulted.

Laura considered them a second more, reassuring herself they were being honest, and not hiding behind mere bravado. "You know you won't have to fight, won't be expected to. You're still kids."

Frowns turned into outright glares, and Rhys shrugged out of her grip a moment before Saeryn did. "We are _Paladins_, Sempai," they said in unison.

Laura chuckled, and ruffled their hair, which intensified their glares, feeling a mix of pride and worry and excited terror. _I wonder if this is what Sensei feels like when I do something precocious,_ she wondered. "All right, all right," she said aloud, "just remember, it's going to feel strange, gloriously powerful, but it's your device. Keep it in hand, and it'll hand you the world."

"We understand, Sempai," Rhys said, smoothing her hair back into place.

"Then go ahead, girls," Laura told them, giving each a little push, "let's see how far we've come."

She followed the twins fully into the main workroom, securing the door with a thought, then followed them further. She gave Noriko a small wave, almost laughing at the bored expressions most of the second-years affected, with varying degrees of success, as they stood off to one side. The Volunteers looked the calmest, next to the teachers, most looking no more than slightly curious. It was the first-years who were the most visibly excited, whispering among themselves and as close to the complete but inactive devices as Lotte would let them get, just behind the teachers.

Laura stopped next to Signum as the twins listened to Lotte's last-minute instructions. She was feeling jittery, but not nervous, just excited. The twins were her pet project, just as she had been Sensei's last year, and the thought of finally, at long last, being able to really push them and see just how far they could go was just too thrilling.

Lotte finished, and the twins walked up to their devices, though not even Laura could tell the two constructions apart. The inactive devices were precisely the same, to a degree Lotte had told her was usually only seen in the mass-produced devices the Bureau issued. Each girl rested her hand on the clear central gem, and paused there a moment.

"Our mother has turned from us," they said in unison, "our father risks his life for us. We face the ancient enemies, the very demons of Hell itself, who broke the world once before and seek to do so again. Our own people fear and despise us. All the world seems to have risen against us." They paused a moment, the power they were channeling becoming visible in the gems and beginning to flow through the device components.

"So be it," they resumed, still in unison, it was in a harsher tone. "We are Twilight Paladins. We are the masters of our fate, the warriors and defenders of this new world. We shall descend upon our foes as a tempest upon the shore, and leave naught in our wake, save _wrack _and_ ruin_!

"Temujin…

"Alexander…

"… Arise!"

Laura could not help giggling as white washed over both girls and their devices woke. Even Signum's telepathic, _'We need to talk about what you've been teaching them,'_ did not dampen her excitement. Yellow-white light washed over the twins, clearing in a moment to reveal two new figures.

They were even more identical than usual, not even mirrored simply 'the same'. Each was wearing a blindingly white suit, jacket trimmed in deep red, pants trimmed in dark blue. Long black hair floated free down their backs, and their faces were covered by blank white masks, flat at the hairline and coming to a sharp point at the chin. Each of them held in their right hand a short black staff, a half-meter four-centimeter thick rod, the last five or six centimeters yellow-white crystal, and the whole thing covered in fine silver filigree. Just below the crystals, spaced around the staff and almost hidden in the filigree, were four slots just sized for cartridges.

They turned to the crowd as one, then raised their devices. One spoke first, "Lotte-sensei, my Alexander."

The other twin had shifted elsewhere, though, saying simultaneously, "Sempai, my Temujin."

Laura started at that, surprised, then grinned and shook her head. "I get you two Friday afternoon, Ruin-chan. This is Lotte-sensei's show." Both girls stared at her a moment, and Laura was morally certain they were frowning at her. Then Saeryn touched Rhys' elbow, and the two of them turned back to Lotte.

Lotte flicked an ear and showed Laura a fang in a crooked grin, then told the twins, "Well, you appear to be wearing your armor already, or is there more?"

"This is our barrier jacket," Saeryn answered.

"We saw no reason not to bring them up," Rhys concluded.

"Ah, yes, over-achievers to the last," Lotte said, then frowned and lashed out, tapping Rhys' mask with one finger-tip. "What's with these?"

Rhys recoiled, shifting partly behind Saeryn automatically. It was Saeryn who explained, "The fewer who recognize us, the safer we and our family will be. The masks and altered hair color will allow others to assume what they will, and allow our parents to deny this if asked."

That actually made Lotte pause a moment, ears drooping. Then she shook her head and lashed out again, ruffling Saeryn's hair much like Laura often did. Saeryn reacted the same as always, jerking away with an insulted grumble, reaching up quickly to repair the damage.

"Don't be so morose," Lotte ordered them, "you'll be just as beautiful as Aria and I are once you've grown up a little more and you're cute enough now. You don't need to hide your cute little faces, or they'll freeze that way. For now, let's see what you've got, shall we?"

Laura's nerves peaked a little when the twins started through the series of tests Lotte had prepared for them, but Signum distracted her. _'Were you planning to take them with you to London?'_

Laura's immediate reaction was to say 'yes', it would be all sorts of incredible to see Wrack and Ruin in action for real. But she hesitated, working past the excitement, and considering what the twins were doing at the moment. They were demonstrating their buster spells against monitored targets, and Laura was somewhat disappointed in how they were doing. There was too much power, too little control, and the bolts were ragged. That could have been due to the discrepancies between what they were used to and how a device worked, but it could be a sign of lack of practice or lack of focus.

So after a few seconds, Laura shook her head, _'I can't say yet, Sensei. They'll have to be up to your standards by the time we go, whenever that is. If they are, I'd love to take them along, but if they're not, they're not.'_

_'Good,'_ Signum said, _'you're learning. We'll see how they do today and tomorrow afternoon. Take them aside this afternoon to give them some pointers. After your class tomorrow, I'll test them while you spar with Kaemon in the training circle.'_

_'Sounds good, Sensei,'_ Laura agreed, mentally plotting out what to show the twins that afternoon and how to test them the next afternoon. She would have to push them, but not too hard. Laura was every well aware how easy it would be for her to overwhelm any of her classmates, and that would not be the point of testing the twins. Planning the next day's class, though, reminded her of something else. _'Sensei? Any word from Allison?'_

Signum shook her head. _'No, other than that she made it in to Cairo safely. We won't know until she returns, or Al Hanthis somehow lets us know they have her. That is the problem with missions like these – for those of us left behind, all we can do is wait and hope.'_

00000

Author's Note: Maunders' reference to 'SOG' is an anagram for Special Operations Group, where the Dogs liaise with the Army people at Fort Knox. ABMS is short for Anti-Ballistic Missile System. The twins' devices are named for the two of the greatest conquerors in history – Alexander the Great, and Temujin, a.k.a. Genghis Khan. Yes, I know, he's properly referred to as Genghis Khan, but Saeryn's too arrogant to use a proper form of address over a given name. Their barrier jackets and masks are based on Aria's and Lotte's disguises from A's, save the colors and the fact that their masks are featureless. Regarding nukes, Yussef's analysis above is essentially accurate – delivery systems designed to deal with modern non-mage targets on a strategic and tactical level are simply insufficient to penetrate Al Hanthis' defenses, much as pre-gunpowder castle walls could not stand up to cannon-fire. Such will be obvious to Szash and Al Hanthis with a minimal amount of research on publicly available information. Remember, Szash's order to 'sink them all' was a gut reaction – something she'll pursue, but not irrationally. As far as Hayate's reaction… I couldn't get it to turn out 'right'. Every scene I tried to write showing Hayate's reaction to the nukes ended up with her looking like a reactionary harpy. Her response is reactionary, but Hayate is never a 'harpy' and never that… out of control. I just couldn't get the scenes to work right.

00000

boomer sooner: I'm afraid I'm not going to do any scenes of Hayate's reaction, not directly. It'll be referenced again, but I could not get the scenes to work. As I mentioned above, each of the re-writes I ran through resulted in Hayate coming across like a raving harpy and irrational, which isn't her. Sure, she's not rational about nukes, but she's not as bad as my attempts at such a scene all turned out. For Eri, the Seed are simply another weapon, limited in use but controllable and with minimal side-effects. There's certainly nothing wrong with deploying them against an enemy, so of course it's rational – just as the Revenants were 'rational' in using that Seiretz/Saires Cannon against Al Hanthis in the first place. Nobody is entirely right here, or in the right.

Bad Habits: Al Hanthis' entire tech-base is built upon magic, not electricity and fire as the modern world's tech-base is. They simply never had a reason to develop something along the lines of a rocket or a nuclear warhead, when they had spells that could do the same. They understand the physics and have the concepts down, sure, but where we would use oxidizing chemicals and radioactive heavy metals, they use magic.

GeshronTyler: Szash does not so much expect Natalia to have specific information so much as 'more information'. We all know quite a lot about nuclear weapons, nuclear strategy, and nuclear doctrine, simply because we grew up with it. Szash and Al Hanthis did not, and while they have their own WMD, it functions along different lines with different strategies and tactics involved. Natalia will not be able to tell Szash things like yields and accuracies and ranges, but she can tell Al Hanthis about when a nuke is likely, who's likely to use one, and little tidbits like 'the US is the only nation to ever use a nuke outside of testing – you might want to reconsider pissing them off'. The internet is a primary source for Al Hanthis, of course, but pages on the web don't give a human feel to information and don't always explain things that are 'obvious'. As for locating submarines – every living thing has a linker core, which Al Hanthis can find. So, yes, they will have to do a mass-search, then filter out schools of fish, pods of whales, and the like. It will take time, but it is possible for Al Hanthis to find and sink every submarine in the world. Question is, upon seeing the scale of the worlds' nuclear arsenals and understanding things like 'Mutually Assured Destruction' and the old Soviet 'Dead Hand' protocols, will Szash bother? Probably not. Much of the searching could be done from the city (using conventional surveillance satellites and Hayate's monitoring Bureau-loaned platforms, ironically). As for taking out the weapons, Szash does not have the numbers of Guard necessary to wipe out the whole world's arsenal at one go, but she could get any single nation with a little Protector help. One Guard (even a Journeyman) could put paid to any ICBM silo in a matter of minutes, and the missiles are surprisingly vulnerable. SLBMs are more rugged, but even a boomer is vulnerable to a mage. It would take time, and it would leave Szash's strike teams vulnerable to counter-attacks by Hayate and her people, but it would be possible. The trick would be keeping other nuclear nations from seeing the attack, deciding they would be next, and pre-empting Szash. Submarines would be able to track Seed approaching, and Seed in the water get most of their speed from endurance (they can simply never stop, something a nuclear-powered submarine like a boomer can match). The Seed would be able to damage any ship they caught, but it would take time. If Seed could swarm a submarine in restricted waters, the boat would be in the position of a Blue Whale surrounded by Orcas – it's bigger and tough as all get-out, but it's less maneuverable and not properly armed for the fight. Where Seed would be most useful in hunting submarines is as hunting-hounds – driving the submarine to the mages who can sink it in seconds, before it can launch some sort of 'vengeance strike'. The problem with cruise missiles and aircraft attacking Al Hanthis is range – Al Hanthis does have the tracking and recognition capability to intercept warplanes, cruise missiles, and ICBMs/SLBMs. They would not necessarily be able to say what they were firing on, but they could engage any such target on an attack profile. A flight could try to sneak in by pretending to be civilian airliners, but once they turned in for the strike run, or deployed missile munitions, there would be perhaps five, six seconds before Al Hanthis engaged. I do have some ideas for using some of the US' more advanced conventional munitions against Al Hanthis' forces, though Rods From God won't be one of them (love the concept, but at this point it's more something Al Hanthis would have the capability to pull off, if only they could find a ZES Platform!).

Kell Shock: Actually, the ocean is one of the least damaging places to use a nuclear weapon, for much the same reason that an airburst is 'cleaner' than a ground-burst. A lot of the radioactive elements will get bound up with vaporized water and carried up into the upper atmosphere, getting spread out over a vastly larger area, thus reducing the concentrations below dangerous levels. In a ground-burst (and, to a lesser extent, an airburst) the radioactive elements bind to physical debris sucked up by the firestorm that does not vaporize and is not buoyant in atmosphere, and thus falls much faster in a much smaller area. There's also the current to keep in mind, which will also disperse the radiation over larger areas relatively quickly. Still, I would not recommend any deep-sea fishing off Portugal for a generation or so. As far as a Trident MIRV not having the yield of l'Arc-en-Ciel, sure – but what else comes close? With WMD on that scale, whether the weapon is at one end or the other is effectively meaningless, there's nothing else to compare except other WMD, and the level of destruction is horrible no matter how 'big' or 'small' the blast. That's why even small nukes remain WMD while something like the MOAB, even as large as it is, is just a bomb. You are perfectly correct about the US revealing more than they maybe should have, but that is a debate of strategy over tactics. Eventually, you have to use your 'trump card' or it might as well not exist at all. The US may have used theirs early, but look at Yussef's arguments above – where else would they have used one? London? New York? Allison could have gotten a nuke into Al Hanthis with her above infiltration, but that would have been a one-way trip, and would probably result in another Al Hazred Event, which is about a quarter of the reason Hayate hasn't suggested it (the other quarter being her refusal to use nukes, and the other half being her refusal to sacrifice one of her people like that). No one thought to use a nuke against the Seed headed to Hong Kong for two reasons – one, the Chinese did not have as accurate an estimate of the Seed pack's location, and two, the rest of the world (who did have that information) did not quite believe claims of the Seed's and Al Hanthis' capabilities.

MaZe-Pallas: Don't make the mistake of thinking that an initial reaction will translate into an operational plan. Szash's initial reaction was more about her character than about Al Hanthis' eventual actions. The ability to teleport is something of a game-breaker, but it's endemic to the setting (though I will admit, Takashi's teleport and the kids' use of teleportation is stretching the setting's use quite a bit). Do remember, though, that every major concentration of mages has a teleport barrier in place – Hayate's school, Al Hanthis, even come Circle sites have teleport barriers (there was one at New Delhi, remember?). It's a similar issue to satellite surveillance and Google Earth, only with more serious repercussions. I'll be honest – I had never heard the name/word 'Shamal' until I watched Nanoha. But remember how even common names can become (in)famous for a single person – admit it, one of the first people you think of on hearing 'Jack' is Jack the Ripper, isn't it? How about Adolf? Or Donner, if you're American? For someone like Sara, who studies Lost Logia extensively, 'Shamal' would be just as infamous as any of those, as the Book of Darkness was a 'repeat offender' – it always resurfaced, always with its four guardians. Also, while the Bureau has contact with Earth and is capable of communicating in any given Terran's native language, that doesn't necessarily mean they use the same names, so Shamal could be unique off-world, or have a completely different meaning. Shamal's name does fit with Cidela's past, though again, I didn't know that until long after I set it up.

MissGardenia: Al Hanthis can do a good job of sub-hunting, because they would not be limited to sonar and sonar-ranges. The Seed would not necessarily be useful, except possibly as 'hunting hounds', as subs can detect and avoid the Seed. ICBMs and SLBMs, used in a direct attack on Al Hanthis, would be a massive waste, worse even than the saturation bombing used in World War II. Smaller bombs and tactical strikes against the 'penny packets' of Seed would also be possible. Ground-interdiction for the forces moving over Europe towards London, would also be effective… if anyone can find them. Smaller size groups of Seed will be much harder to track down and localize to attack than the full-size packs sent after Hong Kong and nuked by the Americans. In terms of aircraft effectiveness, an F-22 would have a hard time, but would be somewhat more survivable than most fighters. It would face much the same issues tanks and anti-tank missiles have against Seed – the heavy munitions capable of penetrating a mage's defenses rely on active lock-on guidance, but the sources of their lock-on (heat and radar signature) are almost impossible to achieve against a human mage. Something like an Apache or a Lynx with a gun-pod and similar relative speed and agility would be more effective, but probably not very. A mage in flight is simply too maneuverable, too difficult a target, and too capable of replying. Say a Sidewinder with a sensitive enough sensor to lock on to a human-temperature target is developed and deployed. The F-22 carrying it will still have to struggle to keep the mage in the Sidewinder's line of sight long enough to achieve lock on, while within the Sidewinder's engagement range. That same mage is going to be maneuvering to avoid being locked, and spamming buster spells (which may be just as capable of seeking as a Sidewinder), and almost as dangerous to an aircraft (which can't carry much armor and stay airborne). Such a hypothetical aircraft/missile system could be magically protected, but at such effort that it would be more practical to simply send another mage. Basically, conventional weapon systems are better employed against the Seed than against mages. Parts of the above logic will play out in-story, as part of continuing efforts to defend against Al Hanthis, but you are unlikely to see a Battle of Britain equivalent.

Tombadgerlock: You're welcome for the update, but you're going to have to wait a little longer for any real dose of Nanoha. Probably until the battle of New York.

Baughn: Al Hanthis views its power generators as safe, stable, proven technology, no different than jet engines and nuclear reactors to us – so long as proper safety procedures are followed, there is no real danger, but when stupid and/or fanatical people mess with things they don't understand, of course there are problems. The power generators are actually safer than nuclear power plants, because their equivalent of 'spent fuel' is an already-worn-down, already-contained, easily-sealed dimensional dislocation You are correct that Eri's comments were incorrect, but remember, Al Hanthis has no experience with nuclear explosions – they've never needed them, not with l'Arc-en-Ciel available and cleaner.

Phily: The juxtaposition of Al Hanthis' view of nukes with the Circles' view of Al Hanthis is quite deliberate, for precisely the reason you mentioned – shades of grey. As for what's more dangerous, it's still a matter of perspective – Al Hanthis' power plants are perfectly safe, so long as proper protocols are followed and no one disables the containment systems then blows one sky high. A strike to wipe out a nation's nuclear arsenal would be possible, using the entire Guard and probably a good chunk of the Protectors in a single simultaneous strike against the target nation's entire arsenal. Well-executed diplomatic maneuvers could even keep other nations out of it until it's over, or keep them from retaliating. Personally, I'd estimate such a strike would take, once Al Hanthis has the target locations, somewhere around half an hour to an hour. While I know there are plans in place to react and counter-strike in that length of time, those plans are based on countering a nuclear strike, and the missiles themselves are aimed at targets all over the planet. Re-targeting missiles on Al Hanthis (beyond those probably already re-targeted) would take time, even after the counter-strike order was given. Al Hanthis' understanding of Terran nations is rather limited and colored by their own preconceptions, but a large part of that problem is the typical intelligence community issue – too much data, not enough people to figure out what that data means. Al Hanthis has access to the internet, and can get into almost any computer system they care to take the time to access, but how much can they trust that info (look at how reliable Wikipedia is, and most of us aren't worried about disinformation and counter-intelligence like Al Hanthis is). For instance, when the teams went into North Africa's capitals, they knew who they had to capture, what their positions and authority were, and where they were likely to be (homes, businesses, offices, etc). Confusion over what happened in Hong Kong is due to the different tech-bases between Al Hanthis and Terra. Hayate's Armageddon spell would be an absolute last-resort – if Al Hanthis is triggering a dimensional dislocation, she'll use the spell to try and stop it along the same theory as using dynamite to stop an oil-well fire. If she went after the city outside those circumstances, the probability is that the shield would absorb enough of the strike to keep the city from being destroyed outright, but not enough to keep from catastrophically damaging one or more power generators. The Dogs do have the ability to enhance ammunition, as mentioned above, and that ability is going to be expanded. Strong AI is definitely a possibility for Allina and Niranjana, but it's not something they are going to deliberately work on in-story more than they already have – HAL and Saraswati probably qualify, but they all have more pressing concerns. As for Nanoha borrowing Laura's bolt-drones, it's entirely possible, but mostly a matter of style. Remember, this whole series is built off the first two series, not StrikerS, and from what I've seen, I dislike StrikerS. Based on those, Nanoha is a ranged combatant specializing in sniping and bombardment, yes, but she relies on herself and Raging Heart (I know, I know, it's 'Raising', but 'Raging' fits Nanoha better, in my opinion). While the drones are impressive, I find her ability to unleash equivalent barrages strictly from herself and with much greater precision to be more impressive. Regarding the relative power of Armageddon versus nuclear warheads, you're half right. There are two differences between an area-effect spell and a bomb – time-release of energy, and controllability. A spell is much easier to control, to manipulate the 'blast' from an omni-directional release of uniform energy to something more focused but still wide-area (a disk or cone instead of a sphere). The big difference is time-release of energy. Any explosive generates and releases all its energy in a second or two, at most, with everything that follows from that being the energy generated disbursing itself. A spell can release its energy that fast, but can also sustain that energy release over several seconds _or more_. Armageddon, for instance, takes about ten minutes to build the spell structure, then generates an energy release lasting anywhere from sixty seconds to as long as Hayate can sustain it. Armageddon has a lower energy release _rate_ than a nuke, but sustains that release over much more time, thus generating a much greater aggregate output. That same aggregate power over time is what would allow it to 'crack a planet's crust'. Think of it in terms of rocketry – take a rocket that can reach orbit carrying a multi-ton cargo. If you launch that rocket normally (a spell), the cargo reaches orbit just fine. If you blow it up on the pad (a nuke), at best a few random molecules of it will reach orbit. Armageddon would, at upper levels, have a horrendous impact on climate and the like. As for where Seed would fit under the Rules of War, it would depend upon the nation interpreting the rules. For the US, Seed are a biological weapon of mass destruction. So, yes, legally the US was well within its rights to use nukes on them.

Templar Prime: Yeah, one of the things that generally annoys me about nukes in fiction is how they're portrayed – useless horror weapons only a General Ripper would even think of using. The simple fact is, there are circumstances under which nuclear weapons are the most logical step – wiping out a concentrated force of high-armor magic-resistant targets in the middle of the Atlantic is one of the clearest. Signum's barrier jacket is actually lavender, I believe (it's not white), but good luck finding a Navy pilot that will admit knowing what 'lavender' means:). Regarding the number of blasts, I did mean 'fourth' (not forth, though), thanks for the note. A Trident II missile can carry up to eight warheads, each of which has a nominal yield of around 400-500 kilotons – but the US is currently limited by treaty to two warheads per Trident II, so two missiles, four warheads. The thing about Al Hanthis technology is, it is all built upon magic, just as our modern world is all built upon electricity and fire. It's a matter of direction of development – the Conclave of Masters, and the Warlords before them, developed a civilization built on magic, and never developed nukes or rockets, despite understanding the physics behind them. There was no reason to create a big one-use rocket that is going to convert expensive liquids and solids into noxious gasses, when a couple of spells can achieve the same effect in far less time (building a spell takes minutes, building a rocket takes years). Similarly for nukes, why create one big uncontrolled explosion, when you can achieve the more controllable and more efficient results from a spell? You are right that nations have exercised restraint in war, especially since 1945 – until 1945, worldwide casualty rates due to warfare were increasing every year to tens of millions, probably more (I don't remember the exact numbers or if the growth was geometric or exponential). After 1945 those same casualty rates dropped to a few million a year, and have stayed there ever since. But remember Vita's situation – surprised, Hayate was angry, and they were rushing off to confront (in Vita's mind) the Circles again. She wasn't in the mood to remember things like Korea, Vietnam, or Afghanistan. I'd have to go back and re-read to check on the first-year/second-year errors, but the current usage is correct – 'First Years' are the new kids, while the 'Second Years' are the students from Academy Blues. Sorry for the confusion.

Hignum: Regarding how famous the Wolkenritter are, there's a difference between seeing a woman standing on a stage at a press conference, and seeing her flying without visible means just after getting nuked. Reynolds probably would have recognized her, under calmer circumstances. Cidela will be back, it's just the how and when that is up for debate.

Nijiru: Eri's reaction is fairly accurate – by Al Hanthis' standards, the number of strategic nukes and the common doctrine for their use is insane. The old Davy Crockett (there was an insane idea) or Atomic Annie shells would actually concern Szash more, since those warheads are relatively small and light, and thus easy to smuggle into the city.

Alex: You are correct, a 'use it or lose it' scenario is possible, which any consideration of the situation will make obvious. Despite her initial reaction, Szash is not stupid, and will recognize that fact. There are still ways around that, though – the Guard could, once they localize a nation's ICBM launch sites and locate their boomers, mount a near-simultaneous strike. It would take a concerted effort of half and hour to an hour, but they could sink every boomer and destroy every ICBM in the launchers before any given nation could process through the launch protocols. Diplomats and negotiations would stand a fair chance of preventing other nations from retaliating.

PokemonJoe1: As Yussef explained above, the Navy's nuclear strike was tactically sound, strategically questionable. In the final analysis, though, it's one of the few ways nukes can be utilized in this war – any other use would include civilian casualties that would be unacceptable to any nation capable of delivering enough warheads to saturate Al Hanthis' defenses. The few nations that would accept wiping out Cairo, short of a 'use it or lose it' scenario, would not have enough warheads to get through Al Hanthis' defenses. Hayate's reaction to the nukes is based primarily on the fact that she is Japanese, but also on her training with the Bureau as, for all intents and purposes, an interstellar cop, both of which make WMD anathema. Mercedes' idea of having the first-years wolf-pack Didier is not a bad idea, except for the fact that no one really trusts the Circles. Now that the twins have their devices, that could change.

Psychic Sandwich: Not quite nuclear warfare, as that implies an exchange of nukes, not a single strike. A 'use it or lose it' situation is possible, depending on whether or not Szash realizes just how futile a 'conventional' nuclear strike against Al Hanthis would be, and decides to take the risk. Probably not likely, though, as nukes are only really dangerous to her field forces.

Derek Q: The Russians are facing a minor PR problem thanks to Natalia, but that is negligible. Their real problem at the moment is, what's in it for them to get in on the 'Allies' side? At the moment, Al Hanthis' campaign is a golden opportunity for them – their two biggest competitors (the US and China) are getting hammered, while Russia itself has so far only lost a small portion of the arms market (North Africa), which has already been replaced (by the rest of Africa, the Middle East, and whoever else is afraid of Al Hanthis). Russia has no reason to get involved yet, and every reason to pursue diplomatic accommodation with Al Hanthis. For an example of how that has worked in the past, I give you Chamberlain's and Stalin's separate pacts with Hitler. Sure, it may be short-sighted and dangerous, but studying history has proven to my satisfaction that nations are always short-sighted and self-absorbed, just like the people that run them. The Israelis will probably approach Japan about an alliance or accommodation, but that will have less to do with any fears of genocide (a family is different from a People – Blood Penance was wide in scope, yes, but not wide enough to qualify as genocide). Israel is going to be more concerned with the possibility of being conquered, but even with those concerns, Israel, like Russia, could come to an accommodation with Al Hanthis – Al Hanthis, after all, can apparently provide shields that will both stop missile and mortar fire and cover large areas, and may be able to provide the sort of 'bomb sniffers' that security experts have been dreaming about for decades. Israel could very well decide that some sort of commonwealth status that includes a massive security upgrade is worth it. I'm fully aware of the scale of this war, and just how much larger it is going to get. But don't forget, this war is being run, on both sides, by a relatively small number of people. Laura and her Paladins have a very specific role to play that is still unfolding – it won't be 'oh my God that's unbelievably huge', but it will be the sort of small, specific actions that make all the difference in the world.

Megaolix: While I will admit that individual scenes are often planned out as I write them, I have been planning the nuclear strike from last chapter since about the time I posted chapter four or five. Even before then I thought out a lot of the nuclear arms arguments Yussef raised above, and a few more I've mentioned in various replies or haven't noted yet. I won't promise that all my answers will satisfy everyone, but they are logical and make sense to me. I originally planned around sixty chapters for this story, and think I'll hit close to that mark at this point. Hong Kong came later than I originally intended, but Allina's intervention and Yussef's planning with the Dogs is happening sooner (relatively – it was originally outlined for around here, but a lot more chapters after Hong Kong than they've ended up being). The kids were chosen for mental flexibility and mental toughness, and I would argue that some of them have cracked – Natalia certainly has, Laura's entire personality is borderline (especially her obsession with power and responsibility). I haven't shown any of them falling apart in tears or running around in a panic because that's not in their natures, but they are having reactions – look at Allison above, and pay attention to what she does in the next chapter. I will freely admit that the Deva Magic is over-powered, which is one of the reasons so few characters have it. The only problem with Hayate researching spells out of the Tome of the Night Sky is that the Tome was sealed away by Nanoha and Fate at the end of As – not 'the security program', the _entire_ Tome. Reinforce is a recreation of the Tome, not the Tome itself. According to As, nothing was left of the book but a little metal pendant, certainly nothing Hayate could have 'researched' spells out of. As for the Bureau, they're caught up in a diplomatic and bureaucratic furball. If you think having an organization as wide-ranging and powerful as the Bureau stand back and impotently watch as its own rules, standards, and reasons for existence are blatantly flouted – allow me to counter with the real world example of the United Nations: sixty years and counting, still utterly useless and getting worse by the day. Or the US and Iran's nuclear program – everyone and their brother realizes that letting Iran get a nuclear weapon means an end to what little stability the Middle East or South Asia have, but no one is doing anything about it. The Bureau is caught up in the same sort of stupidity. In fact, the Volunteers such as Reian are probably helping maintain the gridlock – 'there are already Bureau personnel on site, they can be relied on to keep things under control and keep the Bureau out of it, the Bureau itself has time to figure things out, etc, etc, ad nauseum'. It won't be pretty when the Bureau finally does work things out, though.


	39. 38 Ghost Love Score

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-38 – Ghost Love Score-

Natalia did not relax until the door hissed closed behind her, the buildings' standing shields reforming to cover the portal, separating her from the Guard for the moment. The new security arrangements were just as paranoid leaving as entering, pressure sensors and air-flow sensors and multiple visual identifications, and she was glad they were behind her. She paused there, standing still briefly, feeling Precia slide back into her hiding place, her hips shifting level, her smirk fading, shoulders relaxing. _Another day, another interrogation,_ she thought. _At least the Guard doesn't treat me like I'll go axe-crazy if they look at me cross-eyed. Half the Protectors seem to think I'm Laura._

The Protector escort – an Adept this time, as it always was when she went to the Guard – waited patiently and gave no hint if he cared about or noticed the change in her persona, just like all her other escorts. Only Ahmu had ever commented on it, finding it an amusing façade, though the way he said it left unclear which of her personas he considered the façade. Natalia could still remember, with a bitter amusement, Marcel's and Ichigo's reactions to her 'Precia' persona. It was getting easier and easier to slip into, though it remained simple enough to let go of. She wondered if that was a good sign or a bad one. The ease of adopting the persona could very well indicate she was going insane. Equally worrisome, her escorts' failure to react to the change could either be a painful lack of observational skills, or a sign of people so insane themselves that they did not care about another's madness.

After a minute she swung into motion again, using Koschei for a combination of walking staff and crowd-clearing, heading home. Ahmu had already accosted her for her daily lesson, dragging her out of bed before the sun rose, and Lord Protector Yosho had not sent anyone for her, so she had the oncoming evening to herself. She was tempted to go exploring, see if she could look around some of the interior sections of the city that Ahmu avoided, but she was too tired. The Guard was polite, never getting harsher than hard tones and repeated questions, but the officers questioning her were experts at it, and the mental effort of keeping up with them and keeping from saying something wrong, or claiming as fact something she was unsure of, was wearing, especially when she knew so little of the subject. Nuclear arms and strategy were no interest of hers, though she knew the basics – thanks to Sasha, and his required years in the Army. She knew nothing of 'man portable' nuclear warheads, and was not even sure how big, physically, a nuclear warhead was.

She stuck to the public walk to the nearest monorail landing, climbing aboard one of the monorail trolleys that functioned as a cross between cars and buses. She barely noticed the jewel seed – 'controller batteries', according to Ahmu – in the control panel, telling the empty air a tower and floor. The jewel seed picked a route to bring her to the closest landing to the requested point, after dropping off passengers with intervening stops. It was a remarkably efficient system, and Natalia was occasionally curious how well it would scale up to a planetary level once the war was over, or if they had used something else before the Circles tore it all down.

She and her escort ignored the other people on the trolley. He was no doubt keeping an eye on her, sitting across the cabin from her. She was focused inwards, meditating, seeking the Gates again. The view always calmed her, reminded her of both her purpose and inevitable fate. She hardly noticed the other passengers leaving as their stops came up, though she did notice one person board, look at her, and immediately leave. His reaction amused her more than anything else – her every hope now depended on Al Hanthis' victory, but people like him saw only her original training. Eventually, the trolley's only passengers were herself and her escort, which she preferred. Fewer people were fewer distractions.

Then her escort grunted once, folding over his stomach, then spasmed to the floor and white lines of runes flowed over him. Natalia stumbled to her feet and backed up to the far end of the compartment, Koschei before her, drawing in energy but unsure what spell to shape it for, unsure what was happening. It was not until Allison faded into view, wrapped head to toe in grey leather, only her dark eyes visible above the mesh mask, that Natalia realized just how much trouble she was in.

Allison stood over the fallen Protector for a few seconds, then began stalking towards Natalia, not quite crouched but not fully upright, that wicked knife of a device floating back and forth in her left hand. Natalia watched her come, until she was halfway across the compartment, then remembered to form a shield. "D-do not do this, Allison," She said in Japanese, "I have not been idle this last month, and… I-I can hold you long enough for his reinforcements. They are already on their way."

"Figured they would be," Allison replied in Russian, "but don't worry, I won't be here long, and I'm not here to fight you, Russian. I promised Laura _she_ can have you."

It was hard to tell thanks to the face mask, but Natalia was fairly sure Allison smirked at her with that last comment. It certainly sent a thrill of fear down her spine, and her shield flickered away. She knew Szash was going to take her to New York, and approximately why, but the idea of facing off with Laura for real was… unpleasant. Laura would not hold back, not now, and she had already proven herself willing and able to kill. Li's crimes had been bad enough, but Natalia was fairly sure her own would be seen as worse, yet she still had so much left to do.

"That make you nervous?" Allison chuckled at her, then relaxed out of her combat stance, Gallóglaigh dangling negligently from her hand. "Good, you should be. But now's not the time. I just came to deliver a message. Two of them, actually." She reached inside a fold of her leathers, and drew out a cylinder of paper, tossing it underhand. Natalia shifted sideways, letting it land on the floor, noting the heavy thud of its impact. "Tche, idiot," Allison muttered. "If I wanted you down, you'd've gone down before your friend there. I've got to say, you picked some pathetic people to betray us for. But don't worry, Cid-chan and Niranjana have already given their testimony. We'll have you back where you belong soon enough, you'll get your 'fair trial', then they'll execute you like the scum you are. Won't that be a happy day, Russian?"

Natalia started in shock, "They're dead. Niranjana and Cid-ch… Cidela, t-they're dead."

"No, they're not. You're almost as pathetic a mage as your new pals. You want to kill someone, Russian," she hefted Gallóglaigh, "use a _real_ weapon, and make sure of the job. You failed to kill them, you failed to give these idiots enough information to kill Noriko, and you will fail in your attempts to avoid justice. I only hope your brother doesn't end up paying the price with you, like your grandmother already has."

Natalia flinched from that, but before she could respond, the trolley stopped at another platform. Allison vanished from sight again, the door hissed open, and no one came aboard. Natalia was fairly sure Allison left, though, and sank into the seat behind her as the door closed. Her hand started shaking, rather badly, and suddenly she was on the verge of tears, heart hammering. She could not, for the life of her, figure out what she was feeling, or why, it was too much, too fast, too confusing. It could have been fear of Allison, fear for her brother or herself, anger at Allison, surprise at her continued survival, shock at Cidela's and Niranjana's survival. Whatever it was, it was all too much.

The trolley did not go far, precisely three floors and a quarter turn around the tower to the next landing, but Natalia was paying it no attention. Allison had been _here_, in the city, in the same trolley, within arm's reach. Natalia knew she was a better mage than she had been, thought she could apply what Ahmu had been teaching her to save herself in open battle, but she had no illusions about being able to take Allison at such close range. She had less expectation of being able to survive Laura, whenever the American caught up with her. If Allison could get in, Laura could get in, and probably Hayate-sensei…

"It is a little known fact, but amongst Forecasters, one of our most treasured emotions is surprise – we feel it so rarely."

Natalia twitched, wrenched out of her reverie, to find Ahmu standing over her, holding the package Allison had thrown. He was staring at her, face inscrutable. "I… I'm sorry?"

"You present an interesting conundrum, child, from the perspective of a Forecaster, as do several of your classmates. Not only for your unique blessing and their odd forms of magic, but apparently from your very natures. You are very difficult to read far into the past or the future, difficult to hold, because so many possibilities coalesce around you. In the major and the minor moments, possibilities and changes collect and multiply about you. I confess that, while I saw this particular confrontation coming, I only saw four likely outcomes. Two involved your death at your classmate's hands, one a mutual death. The third involved you successfully fighting her off, only to burn out doing it and suicide. The fourth involved you taking her offer to return to your school, and dying in the attempted escape. All four were equally plausible, and equally likely, far more likely than the variety of outcomes I could not resolve to clarity. So I find our current conversation to be quite the pleasant surprise."

"Allison wouldn't have fought me or made me any offers," Natalia said, "not if she promised to let Laura come after me. She'll never trust me again, not enough to try and sneak me out of the city."

"Even if those were her orders?" Ahmu shrugged, "as I said, a surprise. Here, there is no magic in this package, merely paper and metal."

Natalia took it gingerly, expecting the weight. Carefully, under Ahmu's silent gaze, she unwrapped it. She closed her eyes when she saw the writing on the outside of the letter, mourning her grandmother, then slipped the letter into a pocket. The leather tube opened easily enough, spilling out thirty coins, and she laughed. It was weak at first, but before she knew it had descended into irregular cackling. She even had trouble keeping the handful of coins from spilling, her hands were shaking so much as she rocked in her seat.

"Judas," she finally managed, tears falling down her cheeks, "Judas Iscariot. I wonder if she hopes I will hang myself, like he did?"

"I am unfamiliar with this 'Judas'," Ahmu said, "But I will tell you this – you made the wrong choice, it now falls to you to correct that error." Then he was gone, and the trolley resumed its course.

Natalia turned that over for a few minutes, still rocking, still chuckling unevenly under her breath. She wondered what he meant, trying to see the lesson he was trying to teach her, then angrily dismissed the thought. It was nothing more than a crotchety old man being obtuse. She pulled out the letter from her grandmother, considered it for a moment, then burned it to ash unopened. Mother Morisovitch had rejected her, and she had no interest in the words of the blind. The tears were nothing more than irritation from the fumes and ashes in the closed compartment.

By the time the trolley stopped again, and Yosho himself stepped aboard with a Protector response team, Precia was firmly in place once more, and Natalia did not think she would be going away again any time soon. Natalia was too broken, too damaged, only Precia's strength would see them through.

Yosho's only comment almost broke that mask. "Your brother is awake."

00000

Cidela stepped through the light, and paused, glancing around in curiosity. She had not been able to get a good look out, and this place was completely unlike anyplace she had ever visited through the Void. Instead of a built-up place, a lab or some mage scrying somewhere, she was standing on a pool formed by the changing course of a slow-flowing stream. There were a few scraggly trees, thick bushes, and she could feel a damp heat unlike that she was used to from Egypt, but the place was nowhere near as lush as her beloved valley in Japan.

It was strange, but it was different. Different was good, a pleasant change. She knew she could not stay there, not for more than an hour or so, but she had been walking in the Void so long, she decided to enjoy the break. She could not go far, could not walk beyond the pool, but she studied the bushes, the insects, the small rodent that came to drink. All were healthy enough, to her senses, flush with spring growth and recent rain. Between the heat, the terrain, the plants, and the rodent, she figured she was in Africa somewhere, and probably some-when.

There was nothing around more interesting than the plants, however, no animals larger than the rodent, so Cidela soon turned to practicing her singing. It sounded better, more real, out here than in the Void, and the songs helped her remember better times with her mother, Mariachi, her classmates. Those kept her going when she was in the Void, kept her from despair.

Movement in the bushes distracted her shortly after she began Sara's song, but it was not hostile, just a rustling. Nothing but a mage could harm her as she was, and she doubted even that. So she continued singing, wondering what was moving through the bushes. A minute later, a small boy stumbled out of them, dropping to his knees on a rock by the pool. He watched her warily for a few moments, and something about him tugged at her mind and memory, something familiar she could not place.

Once he was sure she was not a threat, the boy tentatively drank from the pool, then settled in place, still watching her. He was dirty and battered, with dried blood staining his shirt, but she sensed no injury, so she figured it came from somewhere else. Given the apparent wilderness she was in, she thought he might have been hunting, except he did not have a knife, and did not even appear to have any sort of traveling kit.

Once she finished the song, trying to calm him as much as practice, she turned to face him. Figuring from the terrain she was somewhere in Africa or southern Asia, she said in Arabic, "Hello, little one, do you understand me?" He just stared at her, dark eyes wide and uncomprehending. She frowned a little – Arabic was not as all-pervasive as it had once been, but was still widely taught in Muslim lands, and he should have understood it. _Maybe I've reached another world? Or I'm further west than I thought, in the Americas? _She tried English, then Spanish, both getting no response, but to her surprise, French worked.

"I speak it," he said in a sad flat little voice.

The lost look on his face and the sad voice pulled at her heart. "What's your name, child?"

"Didier," he whispered back.

It felt like he slapped her. Name, face, local appearance, it all flowed together at once. _Oh no, this is Didier,_ she realized, _his __past__. This… this must be just after… whatever happened to him. Okaa-san would never tell me, but I know it was bad… I have to be careful. He never said anything before, never gave any hint of recognizing me. Is this new, am I changing something? Or is this just part of what he never talks about?_

The logical part of her mind started ordering her to leave, get out before she damaged something, changed something. But he was so lost, so hurt, and so young… _I never could leave someone or something in pain,_ she thought, gliding towards him. "Oh, you poor thing," she said, half-whispering. "I recognize you now. I am…" _No, I can't tell him my real name. I should not have told Sara-san._ "I am not sure who I am," she said, prevaricating – she was not entirely sure who she was, sometimes, caught between Japan, Egypt, and Velka the way she was. She cast about for a moment, for something he could call her, then she remembered Kessenra's most petulant complaint, and said, "I think you can call me Hikari."

Didier barely acknowledged that, nodding slightly. Cidela studied him a moment, then sighed, moving closer to sit beside the bank. "Come, Didier, sit. I will sing you to sleep, and when you wake, you'll be safe, I believe. Your father must miss you terribly, but I will get you back to him."

"Are you a spirit?"

She blinked, confused, and asked, "What?"

"Are you a spirit? I can see through you."

She looked down at herself, frowning briefly again as she was reminded of her predicament once more. "I suppose I might be," she admitted, since it was possible such manifestations across the Void were the source of ghost-stories, "but I don't feel like I'm dead. I'm lost, I think, looking for where I was when I came here. I will say, I cannot actually touch you. I tried that at first, but I just shift again when I touch a person. So, I'm not dangerous, little one, though Kessenra says I am very dangerous. Sit, little Didier, and let me sing you home to your father."

She took up Sara's song again, gently, softly, putting just a little magic into it. Didier settled, laying down on his side, and his eyes drifted closed as she sang, a few tears falling. It hurt, watching the poor boy and being unable to do anything to help him, but she was getting used to that. So she sang softly, lulling him to sleep, placing a light ward over him to keep the critters away until rescue found him.

The effort left her tired, her grip on the world tenuous, and she rose once the ward was stable. She was uncertain if it would last beyond her departure, but it was the best she could do. She stepped back into the center of the pool, then paused, looking across the stream. Someone was moving through the bushes, several someones.

Four men paused just behind the last bushes, just barely visible to her. After a few seconds, one stepped out, frowning at her. He looked her over for a moment, then considered Didier, until Cidela moved between him and the sleeping boy. "I'm familiar with the Arabs," he said in Arabic, "and they don't train their girl-children. So I'm curious where you are from, that you use the power of God at all, let alone so strangely."

Cidela felt herself cringe a little from that. He was a mage, which meant he was probably Circles, and God knew what sort of damage he could do to Didier if she let him. "I am of Arabic descent," she replied, sticking to French just to confuse him, "but I am from Japan." His eyebrows rose at that, then snapped back down when she asked, "Are you Circle mages?"

"Tche, no," he spat. "We have nothing to do with the colonialists. You are from Japan, but… you are no colonialist, are you? They are all the same, their magic is the same. Yours is… strange."

"It is unique to Japan," Cidela told him.

"What did you do to the boy?"

"Let him slumber," she answered, "and warded him against predators. I will not let you harm him."

The man's frown faded, then he grinned at her and chuckled. "Silly child, we're not going to harm him. But he has bandits on his tail, and I think you would have trouble dealing with them, yes? We know who he is." He gestured, and the three other men, all younger, teenagers just a little older than Cidela, "We will deal with his pursuers, and take him to his father. If you have truly not harmed him, and you truly are not a colonialist, you will be welcome here again. I think I would like to discuss your Japanese magic."

Cidela hesitated still, wary of being tricked. She remembered Juliet's and Hayate-sensei's stories of the Shaman too well, and was not certain she trusted this man any more than she would have trusted a Circle mage. She backed up, closer to Didier, and began to seriously think about trying to pull him through the Void with her. She could get him back home to the right time somehow, if she could take him out.

The man sighed, grin shifting, and he shook his head. "So paranoid. All right, little girl," he drew the heavy knife at his belt, but instead of brandishing it, slashed it across his own palm. As the blood flowed, he held it out over the sandy bank, letting the blood fall, and Cidela flinched as she felt her gift react. She also felt other magic rising, swirling into the blood and the land and him. "I swear on this blood, upon my ties to my homeland, that me and mine will do all in our power to return this boy safely to his father, and that he shall come to no harm from us." He clenched his fist, cutting off the blood, a flash of fire sealing the wound. "Good enough?"

Cidela nodded slowly, surprised both at how far he had gone, and that she had felt the magic. It was not what she was used to, but she thought it would still hold him, somehow. So she drifted closer, reaching out with just a little energy, and before he noticed, healed the wound in his palm. "Good enough. Thank you for taking care of him, he will be a friend in a few years." The magic destabilized her presence, and she felt the Void pulling at her again, and with a blink, she was once more in blackness.

00000

Allina considered her options carefully, debating what to do next and how to do it.

Uli was a nice kid, and had been an incredible help, but Allina could not, in good conscience, continue to operate out of the girl's computer. She could get into the limited implants the child already had – a neural interface and basic regulator for her linker core – but only trade data back and forth. The attempt to do more had not been a serious take-over attempt, just a check to make sure the girl was not vulnerable. She was too helpful, and too cute a kid, to face that sort of risk. Allina made just a couple changes, extra little bits of security added to the implants' code, but otherwise left Uli alone.

Uli's home computer was a relatively safe base to operate from, so long as she went elsewhere to actually try anything. The tower's computers were more than substantial enough to hide herself in, and Uli's home in particular had extra processing power, extra memory, and extra security. Subverting that had been delicate but doable, and the lower half of Yrth Arn Tower basically belonged to Allina now, whatever the inhabitants thought. But it was a residential block, nothing but housing, schools, parks, clinics, entertainment and the like. All the really useful stuff – the communications arrays, the power generators, the weapons arrays, the shield generators, the Guard, the Protectors, the Conclave – was in the core platform or the tallest of the upper central towers.

Her one aborted attempt to get out before had been… less than successful. Oh, the set-up had gone perfectly, once she figured out how to do it. The penetration of networking through the city was incredible, and her greatest difficulty, initially, had been choosing which way to route the various commands and responses so they could not actually be traced back to her. She already had a handful of similar re-routes and cut-outs planned and set, just waiting for a few critical commands to execute. But she had not been able to get fully out of the city, and while she had found her body, she had not liked finding someone else inhabiting it. Even worse had been seeing the damage to Niranjana, and she promised herself once again that she would find out who did that and make them suffer. Niranjana was not Guard, not like Allina, she was not supposed to get injured in the fighting. After those two shocks, the combined efforts of Aria-sensei to track her, and Yosho's kids trying to cut her off from inside, had forced her to abort the attempt before she could really accomplish anything.

So here she was, stuck in Al Hanthis, someone else wearing her face at the school, no idea where her real body was, and no way to get a reliable connection out that would last long enough for her to escape. She was starting to get a little annoyed about it all, especially the constant noise of the city's network traffic. She had made a few very careful probes of the city's critical systems – the power plants, the lifting engines, the shields, and so forth – but all of them were very well defended, more so now than before her first attempt to call for help.

_I could just trash the networks,_ she mused. _Enough chaos here, and Al Hanthis would have to focus here, retreat. Maybe buy time to let 'Jana-chan and Hayate-sensei come up with a way to get me out of here. No, too much chance they would find me and erase me, and that spy would have free reign to do whatever she wants with my 'Jana-chan, the pervert. _

Some of the background noise intensified, and it became 'loud' enough to disturb her contemplations. Annoyed, she focused on it, and found that the Guard and Protector mages living in the tower – many more of the former than the latter, Yrth Arn was something of an unofficial Guard neighborhood – were being activated and called to duty. Warnings were going out to each of them, on Guard and Protector secure channels, but also on the public channels. The public and Protector alerts were interesting, but uninformative – a single intruder had infiltrated the city and had escaped containment. The Guard alert, once she decrypted it a few seconds after finding it, was far more interesting.

_Allison, huh? That's… surprisingly surprising,_ Allina decided. _I should have expected her to break in. But… hmm, the General seems to think she's here for recon… she's going to need an exit, then. I wonder, did she set one up beforehand, or… no, Allison was never that much of a planner. Beanpole would be, though, and those two are thick as thieves… _She thought it over for a few seconds, arguments and counter-arguments flashing back and forth, then gave a mental shrug. _ Either way, I should probably see about making sure she can get out of here safely._

_So, I'm going to have to set up an evac route through the city's shield, then somehow communicate that route to a girl who's invisible and doing everything she can to not be found by anyone, and do it all without letting the General or those Protector incompetents find out about it. _

It took her a frighteningly long time to figure out an appropriate extraction method, all of an hour, and it was only that fast due to luck. She found the perfect escape route, right under the Protectors' and Guards' noses, and something no one would ever think of. She only had to hope Allison did not balk at the concept, and that she could get the crazy huntress through the relevant security cordons.

Once she had the extraction route prepared – which required jerry-rigging a ridiculous number of Al Hanthis' monitoring, power routing, and communications systems – she had to let Allison know. That required a whole other set of improvisations, but any good hacker/soldier was good at improvising as the situation required.

_It's about time this city had a public address system, anyhow,_ Allina decided.

00000

Laying on the edge of a garden from fifty plus stories up and a half mile distant, Allison considered the shield generator. It was remarkably plain, and that very plainness made it stand out. The towers of Al Hanthis flowed together, merging and melding in forms and colors. They were not quite a seamless whole, but each tower had obviously been carefully constructed to blend perfectly with its neighbors. Even the various balconies and parks extending off the sides were arranged to compliment one another. But the shield towers, unlike the crackling crowns of the power generators, were not part of that smooth flow. They stood out sharply, regular, an intrusion as obvious as oak in the desert.

That alone told her something, though she was not sure how useful it was. The shields were not part of the city, they were an add-on, an upgrade. They had not been put up in calm times, with proper consideration for blending them into the whole, they had simply been thrown up wherever they were needed. Allison thought she could see where that lack of consideration had left vulnerabilities – power conduits that were too obvious, exposed entryways, things like that. But all those vulnerabilities had been patched and armored over, in equally expedient ways. That had obviously taken time, she could see where some additions were aged more than others, but the weaknesses had all been corrected.

The weapons emplacements all over the city were much the same – functional, solid, well-entrenched, but 'new'. They, too, did not blend in with the city. That, more than any thoroughness of her scouting, convinced her that there were no 'hidden weapons' secreted in the towers and structures, or at least not major ones. The whole set up of the city's defenses had the feel of an emergency improvisation that had become the norm, like a knife handle that had been taped back on in the field so often that it was more tape than handle.

_They probably started on them when the Circles first popped up, specifically for the war,_ Allison decided, considering the shield generator's tower. _There may be something in there we can use, but I don't see it right now._

That was also not her real purpose, she knew. She was there to gather information, not to analyze it. It was her job to see, then get back and report what she saw. Someone else could figure out what everything she saw meant, and what to do with it.

After locating Natalia and delivering her message, Allison had focused completely on her mission. She had not had as much luck at that as she had hoped, but more than she had feared. She had evaded detection, for the most part, and the few close-calls had only been close, not final. Each of them had come as a result of trying to get close to the shield generators or weapon emplacements, as well, which was why she was now so far from any such thing.

_Well, there was that attempt to get into the Guard tower,_ she reminded herself. _Damn, Szash is paranoid, and tricky, too. Here I am invisible, and she goes and seals all the entrances with visual-recognition locks. Tricky, tricky. Have to figure out a way around that._

She had prowled through several towers, cursory examinations, and she thought she had a good feel for the layout of the city. The closer to the middle she got – both horizontally and vertically – the more security there was, and the more sensitive the locations seemed to be. The upper ends of the topside towers, and the lower ends of the underside towers, were patently the 'high rent' districts, though. Basically, the powerful worked in the middle, and played at the edges, with the peons – such as they were – stuck in the middle.

The organization of the city, the fact that it was literally three dimensional, had been surprisingly easy to adapt to. Still, something had seemed very off as she prowled around, and it had only been as morning arrived that she realized what it was – there were not enough people. The sheer size of the city, the amount of space available for apartments, offices, all of it was incredible. Even with the necessary support facilities any city had, even with Al Hanthis' special requirements, there was an incredible amount of room for people. Based on what Hughes' people had told her, she estimated very roughly that the city could hold ten million or more people comfortably, but there were, she estimated, only two to three million, maybe four, actually in it.

That was a terrifyingly small number, especially given their ambitions and how much damage they had already done, yet it also meant that most of the city was vacant. Entire sections of most towers were simply unoccupied, sealed up and left dormant. The park Allison was in was technically in one of those abandoned sections now, the mall, or whatever it had been, that the park doors led to was empty and still.

What made it worse was the apparent age of the people she did see. Everyone was an adult, the youngest she had gotten close to easily Hayate-sensei's age, and few enough of those. There were children, she had seen them in various parks, especially the park which ringed the platform. But there were very few of them, especially in proportion to the 'elderly' she had seen. Those 'elderly' were closer to her grandparents' style of 'elderly' than to the typical meaning of the word – vigorous, healthy, still obviously active and aware, but they were also plainly old. Hughes' man from the CIA had told her specifically to look for things like that, to pay attention to demographics, and what she had seen was oddly disturbing.

_They either need a baby-boom,_ she thought, gaze momentarily settling on a family – from her estimates, a father, mother, two grandmothers, one grandfather, one aunt, and one child – in the Ring Park, _or they're going to have one in the next few years. Assuming this all doesn't go pear-shaped and we all end up dead._

As the sun rose over Cairo, she was starting to think about getting back. Her eyes went back to the shield generator, but her study was desultory. The city, like all urban environments, was well-lit at night, even with the back-lighting of Cairo, so dawn revealed no more details. Even with Gallóglaigh magnifying the image for her, there was nothing new to see.

Which left her with only one more job on this mission – escape.

That had been the most difficult thing to plan for. Allison had taken it as a given that she would not be able to leave the same way she came in. It would require too much stupidity on the Guard's part, and too much luck on her part, for the portals to be both two-way and for no one to notice her presence in the city. Even if she had infiltrated without being noticed, delivering her message to Natalia would have warned them she was there.

Signum-sensei and Vita had done their best to help her, Noah, Yussef, and Hughes' men plan her egress. They had come up with a number of options for it, all of which seemed generally workable at the time, but all of which felt insanely dangerous in the here and now. There was enough traffic in and out of the city that she should have been able to slip out with regular travelers. But after how fast the portals she used to get in had backfired, the thought of using 'public' routes made her very nervous. She could not get at the portals, could not get at the gap-generators such as what had let Hayate-sensei in the one time, could not teleport out through the city's main shield…

_I'm going to need a distraction,_ she decided, _something big enough to get me onto a transport or something._

That distraction then presented itself, in a rather surprising way. There was a sudden chime and a high pitched rising whine of speakers powering on, then, booming out over the entire city, came a familiar smoothly flat voice.

"Hey Wilderness Girl, it's Allina. I've got your departure all arranged. We're going to borrow a page from Spock and do this Wrath of Khan style, if you take my meaning. In one week, eight days, four hours and a handful of minutes, your portal will be open and you will be going through it. If you want to know where you're going to end up, just find your friendly neighborhood Guard mage and listen for the fake Brooklyn accent. You're going to want to get close to the mooks, but watch they don't take a bite out of you. If you think you can trust me enough, meet me where you left our Goth friend, I'll let you know where to go from there."

Allison rolled over on her back and frowned, considering. She knew about the unknown that had contacted Niranjana and Allina, knew that Na-chan considered it to be HAL, or the like, and that it apparently considered itself to be Allina. What she did not know was if it was friendly, as it had implied, or some sort of convoluted double-agent sort of thing.

She considered it for a while, turning it over. The timing was impossible, there was no way she could keep herself going for a week. Brooklyn was easy enough to figure out – this HAL/Allina/whatever obviously expected to get her out with the Guard force going to New York, or possibly with the Seed, given the reference to 'mooks' and 'biting'. But the 'Goth' part took her a while. As far as Allison knew, she knew no Goths, no one at the Academy was that pretentious. But dark, depressed… that described Natalia to a T. Overall, Allison figured that while the timing was impossible, it was worth a look to see if she could figure out a faster exit.

_So, she wants me to go to where I left Natalia… the monorail platform, should be easy enough to reach. Going to be swarming with Protectors after that announcement, though._ She patted a pocket that did not really exist, contemplating, then shrugged. _Well, brought the explosives for a reason, they should make a good distraction. Let's see what this fake-Allina has come up with. _

She reached the platform almost two hours later, and sure enough, there were the Protectors, swarming all over it. She watched from a distant platform for a while, considering, and smirked as she watched most of the people fade away from the platform. A few 'disappeared' into some shoddy stealth spells, but most actually left, heading for other hiding spots. There were patently enough wards and monitors on that landing platform to locate every last microbe that dared approach it.

Shaking her head, she finished her own preparations. She had picked a balcony – an open-air restaurant, not one of the poor innocent park-decks – and prepared it carefully. The restaurant itself was still open, had tables spread out, but was frequented by Guard mages, just one tower over from their main tower. It was also suspended over one of the ghost-town sections, mostly, and a quick check had shown none of the inhabited spaces were too worrisome – no schools or hospitals or the like, just administrative offices for something or other. Two pounds of C4 in four lines, a little careful magic to weaken the structure, a little more to make sure the blast did not penetrate the top level, and all four of the remote detonators she had been given completed the distraction. The level of magic she used was low enough to be lost in the background, and none of the people on the balcony were on alert. It took all the explosives she had been able to finagle out of Hidan's people, but she figured it would suffice for an amateur demolition of a hundred-foot wide balcony.

She dropped away, not flying but sliding along the surface of the tower using just enough magic to keep from sticking or falling too fast, a little more to guide her fall. She landed on a monorail boarding platform, and slipped aboard the next car. From there, she rode the rail for another hour, waiting for someone to return to her target tower, making sure no one noticed and responded to her little sabotage.

Luck was with her a short time later, when another monorail trolley deposited her much further up on the target tower than the monitored level. She had to work her way around to the correct side of the tower, then crouched there, magically stuck to the sheer vertical face. There were still several Protectors on the landing platform, and she was fairly sure the wards and monitors were still there. But it looked the same, and she figured it would remain that way. So she reached into the pocket Gallóglaigh had created in her leathers just for this moment. Her hand closed around the detonator, and she squeezed the priming handle twice, as she had been shown, then released it, feeling it click.

A second later, there was a surprisingly muffled boom, and the carefully prepared balcony bucked sharply. The outer edge drooped, then in agonizing slowness, the balcony collapsed against the tower and tore away. The whole mass began to slide down the tower, spilling tables and umbrellas behind it. The crashing slide was far louder than the explosion had been, shattering glass (or whatever it was, it did not really feel like glass or plastic under her hand) and warping steel combining into a stomach-churning sound of disaster.

It certainly got the Protectors' attention. Mages in gray and white exploded out of the surrounding towers, closing on the explosion, even as those who had been on the demolished balcony were lifted into the air by more mages in red and black. Allison watched them go, mentally cursed that not every Protector left, but struck anyhow. She dropped, trusting in Gallóglaigh to perfect the timing of her landing.

Halfway down, something distracted her, though, a pattern of blinking lights on yet another tower. It was subtle, but distinctive, and it was enough to make her pause, just four floors above her target. She studied the blinking lights for a moment, before the pattern gelled in her mind's eye – it was a very fast cycle, but the lights were forming, one letter at a time, JANACHAN, with an arrow pointed down. It ran for a few seconds longer, then vanished.

Allison considered it for a few seconds, then shrugged and bolted. Flight might trigger the Protectors' wards at this range, but might not as well, and speed was more important. She almost teleported, but both teleports she knew created rather obvious visual signatures. There was no door in the indicated spot, so Allison hit it with Gallóglaigh a moment before impacting it, the magic-sharpened blade shattering the window into little grains and spheres.

"You're so violent, Alley. I got your signal, but now we can't talk," the walls said. "Lower north quarter, tower with the all-blue safety lights, twenty-second floor, apartment five-two-two-zero. Run, now, the Protectors are closing."

Allison considered bolting back out the window she had come in by, but she was not that confident of her ability to disappear. So she used Gallóglaigh to cut her way out of the abandoned office she found herself in, then bolted down that hallway. She created a time-delay buster on the fly, launched it at the window at the far end of the hallway, then dove sideways and up. Most of the towers had transit shafts between the floors, some completely open, some equipped with lift cars. This one was open, but sealed several floors above and below where she had entered. She exited the shaft just below the upper seals, and vaguely heard and felt her buster trigger and detonate against the shield. It was the far side of the tower from where she had entered, and with a bit of luck the Protectors would focus on those two points long enough for her to find a quiet spot.

Sure enough, the Protectors cordoned off both shattered windows, then began searching the building floor by floor. Allison could feel barriers going up, containing the uninhabited sections of the tower, and grinned. They would be confident in those barriers, especially the teleport damper, but that damper was not as powerful as the city's shield, and Takashi's teleport let her bypass that. The only problem was figuring out where to go that would not get her instantly caught again.

Prowling around, she found a good candidate – the Ring Park, comfortably distant from any of the perimeter emplacements and shield generators. She appeared out of the rip in reality above a screaming crowd, whose first reaction was to get away from the Void-like apparition of Takashi's teleport. None of them even seemed to notice her presence. The Cloak could have explained that, it remained stable enough through the teleport, but she expected people this steeped in magic to be more on the ball.

Six hours later, she found the tower, floor, and apartment indicated. She debated how to get in for a few minutes, while prowling around the floor checking for ambushes. Finally, she decided to just open the door, only to find she had no idea how to do that. She thought she saw a motion sensor or touch-pad beside the door, but physical contact did nothing. It took Allison a few minutes more to decide she would have to try dropping the Cloak of Shades – the idea of being visible _any_where in this city gave her chills, but she forced herself to it eventually.

The door hissed open as soon as she appeared, and HAL's voice stated, "Finally. I've been waiting for you, Allison."

"Uh, yeah, nice to hear you, too, HAL."

"I am not HAL!"

The emphasis was clear, but still so close to the monotone of the device that Allison shivered. _Man, I really hope she's closer to Allina than to her namesake. That movie gave me the creeps when Laura made us sit through it, I don't want to re-enact it._ Still, stubborn honesty was one of her 'virtues', after all, so she said, "If you're not HAL, you're not Allina either – or at least, not the only one. The Allina back at school's the real deal."

"She's a spy!"

Allison shook her head, "She knows what you and Niranjana talked about the night before Hong Kong. You know, the time Niranjana insists the two of you were covered by every privacy shield she and Saraswati could manage?"

"We had no conversation that night, I will deny that to the day I die."

Allison smiled, "But Niranjana won't, unless her parents are around. Look, like I said, if you are Allina, you're not the only one."

"I will get my body back, just you watch."

"You say so. Your little public announcement said something about an evac route by way of the Seed?"

"Hah! Not a chance I'm sending you out that way!" HAL-Allina-whatever actually giggled, "Good bit of misdirection, though. The General's cagey, she'll figure out what the message said, and the Guard'll all be watching for you to try and sneak through the portals they're setting up. She's going to try a Pandoval Strongpoint – seize a town in upstate New York somewhere, bury it under fortification platforms with a platoon of mages and some Seed, then turn it into an activation center for a full-up Seed strike force. The US won't dare nuke their own towns, though the Russians or Chinese might."

Allison shivered at that, shaking her head, "Yeah, probably not. But if I'm not going out that way, how do you think I'm getting out?"

"That's the beautiful part… the Protectors are going to give you a lift. Yosho's people aren't nearly as security-conscious as the Guard. They're activating Seed of their own – not Alphas, those a Guard prerogative – to set up border patrols. To mark the border for the Seed, they are going to place mobile signaling stations, which get deployed via lighter. Technically it should be the Guard's responsibility, and the General offered her suggestions and those were better than Yosho's plans, but the Guard's focused on offensive plans, so the Protectors get border patrol. It helps them feel useful, or something."

Listening to HAL-Allina, Allison began to notice some oddities that made her very nervous. It was subtle, more in the way the program referred to things inside Al Hanthis, but Allison had the distinct impression that she was talking to a fan of the Guard – which Allina had not been. She was not sure about before Hong Kong, but after Hong Kong Allina, when she talked about anything other than computers and Niranjana, seemed to put the Guard in the same category as the FBI's cyber-crimes division – somewhere just below infectious pond scum.

This version of Allina was not exactly a 'Guard Booster', but she patently thought highly of them, rather the way Allison herself thought of them. Her opinion of the Protectors was also far better formed and more definite than any of the other students' opinions, though it again tracked with Allina's, if being rather more dismissive.

On top of those attitudes was the terminology the program used, from how it always called Szash 'the General', to referring to the larger Seeds as 'alphas', the 'fortification platforms'… Allison could figure out what she was referring to, but the way the program used the terms, even with the 'soothing' monotone, was too familiar, too pat. Some of all of that could have come from the program's time in Al Hanthis, but Allison had no way to be sure of that. All in all, the more she heard, the more she worried that the program was a Guard plant, or possibly a Protector trap.

"Okay, okay," she finally interrupted the program's somewhat rambling plan for getting her aboard a Seed transport. "Look, this sounds lovely Halley, but I'm a little twitchy about all of it. The Protectors have to realize this lighter would make an excellent escape route for me."

"Well, sure, but they're Protectors," the program replied, "and what's this 'Halley' crap?"

Allison rolled her eyes, "I'm not calling you 'Allina 2', and you don't like HAL, so you get both."

"My name is Allina!"

"So is Allina's, it gets confusing. Look, you get back to the school and prove you're real and the other Allina's the fake, I'll call you Allina. Until then, you're Halley. Deal with it."

"I am so tempted to call the Protectors on you right now! They wouldn't catch you, but ooh you so deserve it!" Halley fell silent for almost a minute, then grumbled, "look, just get to the entrance to the Protectors' flight bays by sunrise tomorrow. I'll get you in, and you can out that way and let Hayate-sensei know everything you've picked up. If I can, I'll get you the Guard's staging point in New York before you go, but no promises. The General's cagey."

00000

The healers insisted on keeping Sasha isolated for several hours after Natalia arrived. According to them, he was understandably disoriented and, despite everything they had done, physically weak and vulnerable. Mental healers were with him, talking him through waking up, explaining to him as gently as they could what had happened to their parents, to his wife, where he was, and how he came to be there. Yosho assured Natalia that they would tell him nothing of how she earned Al Hanthis' assistance, but Natalia was honestly unconcerned with that. Her brother was awake again, for the first time in so painfully long. Even just the visual feed they let her watch had her in tears, despite Precia's presence.

Then came that beautiful, magical moment when they finally let her in to see him for real, to talk to him. The bed he was in was folded up to let him recline, and he was wearing the loose plain shirt and pants Al Hanthis used in place of a hospital smock over a still-wasted frame. He looked gaunt, his hair was a mess, the hand he raised in greeting was shaking, and it looked like it took everything he had to smile at her.

He was beautiful, perfectly wonderful, and she literally flew across the room, heedless of the healers and Protectors watching, wrapping his chest in a hug and burying her face in his shoulder, sobbing in joy and pain as all the worries and guilt and victories hit her at once. She felt his arms go around her shoulders, his chin in her hair.

"Oh, little sister," he whispered in Russian, "this place, these people, they are not ours people, it's not our home, and Grandmother isn't here. They won't tell me how, but I know something is wrong. What have you done?"

00000

Author's Notes: Yes, there was more going on when Allison accosted Natalia than is displayed above, things neither girl was aware of. Cidela is the 'Green Lady' referenced in Didier's Side Story, which is relevant to background rules/details. Differences between their conversation above and that from the Side Story are due to the fact that the French Cidela learned is not quite the same as that taught in France's former African colonies, and also because all the languages the kids learned are somewhat blended, thanks to how they learned them and how they use them (back in Academy Blues, round about the Kyoto trip I think, there was an off-hand comment about the school creating its own pidgin language – same thing). Lastly, yes, Allison's C4 distraction was rather close to terrorist tactics, but remember, this is Allison – she's nowhere near the idealist Hayate is, and while her temper's not as bad as Juliet's, she still has rage issues, especially with would-be conquerors.

00000

Kell Shock: It would probably help to see the portals not so much as standing openings, but as 'teleport carrier waves'. Once something crosses the threshold, it functions as a slowed-down teleport. If the mass being transited varies from that logged into the control systems (or, as in Allison's case, is not logged in), it is routed to a Protector containment bay automatically. That's why the Protectors are so 'lax' about guarding the portals, the portals 'guard' themselves, to an extent. That being said, the guy who had the duty at the containment facility was definitely an idiot. No comment on Yussef's efforts at Fort Knox, that'll be covered in story in a few chapters. As for dealing with Al Hanthis' shield, I'm afraid that's a plot point – if they even get a chance to deal with it. The Twins devices are based on the Magelords' staves from Debra Doyle & James MacDonald's Magworlds trilogy – short staves chased in silver and wielded one-handed. They may be very short staves, but they are staves. However, their barrier jackets aren't frilly enough for them to be traditional magical girls. Demon cannon girls, now…

Arkeus: Thanks for the review, and the compliment.

hignum: Allison's escape attempt will be next chapter, mostly, though you'll have to wait for the following chapter to find out if she makes it:). The politics and planning is supposed to be somewhat mysterious, simply because I don't want everyone to predict the whole plot halfway through the story. Don't worry if you can't follow it, it's supposed to be complicated and hard to follow.

D.K.N.: Thanks for the compliment, and the review. To answer your first two questions: 1) There is almost no chance of anyone ever encountering Precia again. Cidela might stumble across her, but it would not be a pretty experience, and she would not be bringing Precia back. I do have a set of rules figured out for Cidela's situation and Void interaction in general, and bringing Precia (or her daughter) back would violate several of those rules. 2) The Bureau will be involved again, but it's going to be complicated and not pretty for anyone, least of all for the Bureau. As for your third and fourth questions, I'm afraid I can't answer them without massive spoilers. 'Good' or 'bad' answers, either would reveal the plot much too soon.

Nijiru: Mostly the Myrmidons would probably take Saeryn's device name as a compliment – proof that even crazy Laura's weird minions can recognize the best in history. Besides, Achilles and his Myrmidons came from a different part of ancient Greece than Alexander. As for what Mother Morisovitch wrote to her errant granddaughter, I'm afraid we'll never know.

Baughn: Allison has been looking forward to her own vengeance against Natalia too much to let it go. But as mentioned in the notes, there was more to the above meeting than Allison's skills. Remember, there are _a lot_ of factions in Al Hanthis. Al Hanthis' air-supremacy is somewhat dependent on target-recognition, but they had long enough between returning and the first attack to map out and learn to recognize civilian flight profiles. So they have a high probability of spotting an incoming attack, yes. It would be entirely reasonable to teleport a number of nukes just outside Al Hanthis' shield and set them off. But who on Earth can teleport? The Circles can't, they have no mage who can process the math properly for a non-line-of-sight teleport, even though a wolfpack could probably generate sufficient power. Only Hayate's people could do it, until Maunders' fellow 'Circle Volunteers' learn how to manage teleports. The Bureau Volunteers might consider it, except their knowledge of nukes would come from Hayate, or from historical atrocities elsewhere cleaned up by the Bureau, making them almost as opposed. Also, remember, the Bureau personnel are police, not soldiers, and the idea of murdering millions of Egyptians, even to achieve victory, would be anathema. That would make them just as bad as the people they have trained and sworn to combat. Not everyone would be fine with losing the Earth, but nukes are definitely an absolute last resort for those who could use them effectively. And admit it, how many times have you seen or read about people sticking to their principles to the point of utter defeat? I'd need a book just to list the ones I know of.

Phillip: Thanks for the compliments, and the review. I have improved markedly since I started writing this, which is painfully obvious even to me. Path of Vengeance was originally a side-project to a much larger (and, looking back at it, rather execrable) Naruto fiction I was posting. The idea that became Academy Blues only occurred to me after I finished PoV, and I have been tempted on occasion to go back and re-write PoV to a higher standard. I'm well aware Deva magic is very powerful, and you're going to get a demonstration of just how powerful it is before the story ends. That would be one of the reasons why there are only five such mages in a story with almost a hundred major and secondary characters who are Velka, Mid-Childan, or Circle mages. The problem with how 'major' Al Hanthis provocations are, from the Bureau's perspective, is that Terra is not a major world (beyond being a major headache). Terra does not have a unified government, it is not a Bureau signatory world, is not near the heart of Bureau civilization (i.e., Mid-Childa), and does not have any real number of mages (remember, the Bureau's only known about the Circles for, apparently, a few months to a year at this point). The Bureau has hundreds of worlds to keep track of, each with significant mage populations, each with archaeological sites that may contain lost logia, with criminals trying to obtain/use/sell lost logia, and probably trillions of people to worry about. Expecting the Bureau to react with urgency to the murder of a few hundred people or the presence of Lost Logia on a backwater world, short of imminent dimensional dislocation, is expecting a bit much. Especially when they are faced with the complaints of representatives of those hundreds of worlds and trillions of people that are, to their eyes, the civilized universe, who are all complaining about the Bureau resources already 'lavished' on an insignificant non-signatory backwater. Remember, Nanoha and Fate were about to cause such a dislocation with their final battle, and Precia was deliberately creating one, and that intervention was taken on Lindy's initiative, which has already been ruled out in this situation. Yes, the local Bureau forces are quite well aware of how dangerous the situation is. Highers up (equal to or beyond Chrono) will basically look at the 'location: Earth' and file it under 'yet another overreaction'. I'm sorry you have trouble believing it, but no bureaucracy (and the Bureau's proven to be typically so, with Graham and what I've heard and read of StrikerS) is as responsive and active as you appear to think, not when it's not their people on the line, not even military or paramilitary ones.

Anonymous Reviewer: The twins are actually turning out to be a little more militant than I originally intended. They are closer to Laura than they would prefer to be, though. As far as the relationship between Noriko and the Paladins, that is going to get shaken out in-story, as will the actual structure of the Paladins as an order, but I have not yet decided if Noriko will take the Oaths. They would not interfere with her duties as Emperor, though swearing to obey herself would be sort of redundant.

Barricade: Thanks for the review, and for reading. Nanoha keeping her name was mostly a cop-out on my part – I referenced her by her maiden name _after_ the scene where she was married, and thought it would be amusing to correct the mistake by have Yuuno take her name. Giving the devices more of a personality would be interesting, I'll admit, but it would nearly double the number of characters I have to keep track of. Reinforce (and the Sword, the Hellblade, and now Senbonzakura and Hypocrates) is a special circumstance due to the original's appearance in As (I liked the concept, especially after the psycho-security program was separated), and due to being a Deva device. I've never seen Fate/Stay Night, or played the game, and have to admit that I got the idea from David Weber's Honorverse history (though he got it from one King of Prussia – Prussia's laws required a 'king', but did not specify the 'king' had to be male). Your idea of the telefrag would work with some descriptions of the teleport, but not the way I envision it in the Nanohaverse. Based on how the first two series presented themselves, there's no 'environmental interaction' to generate the effect you're talking about. On the other hand, Takashi's teleport would be a good way to mess with an unprepared Deva mage, or with Laura. As for Laura's similarities to Batman, I guess I can see them, but they're not intentional (other than the whole 'hero' thing). Her oaths to Noriko were similar to the whole intro from Batman The Animated Series, but also to any number of heros' self-introductions, from Nanoha's "Then I'll be a devil" to Darkwing Ducks "Terror that flaps in the night".


	40. 39 All Along The Watchtower

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-39 – All Along The Watchtower-

Allison stared at the lighter in its cradle, considering the open ramp, the mechanical assemblies being loaded aboard it, and the people in gray on white uniforms doing the loading. She was less than ten meters from them, but they gave no sign of her presence, not even any sign of nerves. It was an odd sensation, spending so long among so many people and yet passing unnoticed, more obvious than it usually was when she was training with the Cloak. But she was getting used to that, and comfortable enough to trigger the telepathic/computer relay cobbled onto Gallóglaigh and ask, _'Are you sure about this?'_

There was a long-suffering sigh in hear ear, and Halley muttered, _'Do you want me to run through the probabilities again? I can, you know, I've got reams and reams of data just for you. You'd know that, if you hadn't slept through it the last time I tried to explain it.'_

Allison rolled her eyes. _Great, two days without sleep in high-stress conditions, of course I conk out for a bit when I'm relatively safe. But does little-miss-ghost-in-the-machine cut me any slack? Hell no. She's worse than Vita-sensei._ To her 'ally', she sent, _'No, I'm not interested in probabilities, I just hate walking into traps.'_

_'It's not a trap,'_ Halley insisted. _'Yosho's a political animal, not a soldier, he'd never think of it, and his people all copy him like mirrors.'_

Allison found that hard to believe. The Protectors were not the Guard, no, but no one could function as a police force and be that inept, not in the real world. So she considered the lighter for another fifteen or twenty minutes, watching, waiting, debating. It was only when the last folded-up beacon was loaded aboard and secured that she mentally cursed, and moved. The entire back end of the lighter folded down into a long ramp, rising up into the bed of the craft, and she ghosted up it just as it started to close. The silence with which it moved was a little disconcerting – it looked like a solid metal slab a little over an inch thick, with hinges as thick as her thumb – but Allison was up it before it was even level with the ground.

Inside the lighter was rather tightly packed. The cargo bay was ten feet or so wide, about twenty or so long, and just over eight high. Expansive as it was, though, it was full of folded-up beacons that, even stacked efficiently atop one another and secured to each other by some sort of magical tractor-beam coin things, left only a narrow aisle down the center. There was a two-person control cabin forward of that, with a single small door in it, but there were two Protectors in there. Allison had almost argued for riding in the other lighter involved in this mission, the one carrying the installation crew and their tents and supplies, but there would have been even more people, and thus more chances for someone to notice her presence.

She settled for waiting in the aisle, right at the door to the crew cabin. The door was closed, and too solid to hear through, so she crouched down to wait. According to Halley it would be about twenty minutes from lift off until the lighter was clear of the shield. After that, Allison would be free to teleport out whenever she wanted and head back to school.

She was somewhat surprised at how much she was looking forward to that. It had only been two days and a bit, and Allison had been out in the wilderness, even out alone, for longer than that. She usually loved being out and about longer than that. But this was not the deserts and hills of the Reservation, or the woods around the school. This was a city, just about as alien as a human-built city could be, and everyone in it was a serious threat to her continued freedom and life. She had been very confident of her ability to do this, and was proud at how well she had done, but it was proving to be far less thrilling than she had expected, and far more frightening.

A few minutes after boarding the lighter Allison felt a slight jolt as the landing locks released, and heard a faint whine that she presumed was the engines. Five minutes after that, time Halley told her would be used to maneuver clear of the Protectors' hangar at the base of Kerrel Tower, another sound intruded. It was faint, a hissing sound, but Allison was twitchy and paranoid, and she traced it quickly enough. It was coming from one of the beacons, just visible at the back of the forward most stack on the left. She could not reach it, but there was enough gap between the forward wall of the cabin and the stack of beacons for her to see a small piece of metal flapping in an intense breeze.

_Gas cylinder,_ she thought, _shit__, I __knew__ this was a trap._ She was not worried about the gas, whatever it was, confident she could hold her breath long enough to escape, unless it was something really nasty – _chemical weapon_ nasty. She needed to know to decide what to do, so half-heartedly, she asked, _Gallóglaigh, analysis?_

_Patch to Halley active… _A set of symbols popped up in her vision, a ring around the opening and a series of elements, then Gallóglaigh replied, _Composition –_ _Nitrogen seventy-seven percent, Oxygen twenty percent, Argon one percent, carbon dioxide zero point nine percent, usual trace elements within standard parameters. Analysis – compressed atmospheric gasses, mildly anomalous levels of standard gasses insufficient to constitute danger._

_ Atmospheric… what?_ She hesitated, unsure what that meant. _What kind of idiot gases someone with regular air?_

Then the hatch in front of her cracked, and slid open. Reaction took over, and Allison slammed her shoulder into whoever it was coming through. The woman grunted in surprise and stumbled back, giving Allison enough time to get Gallóglaigh up and around, and she lunged into the control cabin.

Gallóglaigh went against the surprised woman's throat, bending her backwards over the control panel, and Allison's free hand lashed out, grabbing the other Protector's hair. She wrenched his head back against his head-rest, and snarled at him, "Keep flying. You report the cargo bay's clear and you have no problems, or both of you die here and now."

00000

Ahmu considered the pair of lighters, frowning slightly. They had exited the hangers in good order, took up formation together, and were now hovering some twenty meters above the ring park. The trailing lighter had maneuvered directly behind the lead lighter, and the pair had stopped in mid air. There were no technical problems with that, the nature of the lighters' drive systems made hovering no different than flight, and their maneuverability made the positioning immaterial. But lighters were intended to carry sensitive cargoes over long ranges efficiently, and there was rarely a reason to have one hover immediately after launching, especially in the city.

"Now is the time, Ahmu," Ollan murmured.

Ahmu glared at the younger woman a moment. "Kids," he muttered, "you always leap before you look, always so eager, never understanding the significance of where you are, what you are doing… or what you are about to do."

Ollan, white-haired and maybe twenty years his junior, matched his glare, "Kid? My grandson would beg to differ on that, you decrepit old has-been. And what's so hard about this? We have committed treason before, we will again. At least this time we are not going to murder the majority of the human race."

"We did not murder them," Ahmu replied, then cut off her protest with an irritated wave, "Yes, yes, semantics. Our fellows in Al Hazred _may_ have arranged or allowed that disaster, and we definitely allowed the Cataclysm through our own willful blindness, therefore we share responsibility for their deaths as if we had sabotaged that generator ourselves. But treason is never easy, child, and just because this leads to the least unpleasant course does not make it pleasant."

"I'm aware of that, Ahmu," Ollan snapped. "Do not lecture me merely because I do not revel in my own angst. Are we going to do this, or are you going to whine about it like a spoiled little boy some more?"

"I think I'll whine a little more," Ahmu commented lightly, "it's remarkably relaxing, pretending there's a slight possibility of finding someone who might actually show a little sympathy."

"Try that child your son brought you, she might be ignorant enough to believe your whining. If you won't…"

"You do it," Ahmu said, "I've betrayed my people enough."

Ollan rolled her eyes, but Ahmu said nothing more, walking away. Their plan was based on Ollan's visions, her readings, and Ahmu was the first to admit that she was better at teasing out the best rout forward than he was. But, as he had told Ollan, he had committed enough betrayals, large and small, and while he supported the current course, he had no need to implement that course himself, especially given his own doubts about it. Ollan would see the girl safely on her way, and once again the Forecasters would correct the failures of the present.

Besides, he had arranged through his own visions and plans for…

"Father," Yosho said, as Ahmu stepped through the door from the overlook into Hineth Tower. "Would you care to explain why you and your friend out there are interfering with the Protectors capturing a spy?"

Ahmu considered Yosho for a few moments, then huffed. "No, I do not care to explain. Much as I have never explained why I do not share what I know of Lord Protector Gelan's death at the hands of the primitivists' saboteurs. Do not presume to judge me, Yosho. I've been at this game longer, and played it more deeply, than you ever have. I also know far too many of your secrets."

Yosho did not even twitch at the threat, merely cocked an eyebrow at Ahmu's last comment. "I don't play games, Father, and you were never one for politics. That spy…"

"Hah! Politics," Ahmu said, almost spitting the last word. "Ollan is too focused on what is to come, to see what is before her. You, Yosho… you are too focused on what is before you, to see what is to come."

"And what I see at the moment is treason. The only reason I haven't already called down squads to take both of you into custody is because you are my father. Journeyman Turo is standing by, however. He thinks he is preparing to spring his own trap for the girl, but I think I'll be bringing him in for you."

Ahmu shook his head slowly, regretting once again that his son had never followed the Forecaster's path. Ahmu had discouraged him from it, quite deliberately, despite recognizing how well Yosho would take to the skills. He had discouraged Yosho for other reasons, and mourned the necessity in the way of any father whose son was not up to following in his footsteps. "Too much focused on the moment," Ahmu repeated. "The girl must be allowed to escape the city. Hence my arranging for your little trap's first stage to fail, and Ollan now arranging for the second stage to fail. If she does not escape, worse yet than we have experienced will befall us."

Yosho started slightly, making Ahmu grin. _Even my own son believes me to be obsessively obtuse. Ah, the wonders of a reputation, when even your own son believes it. I wonder if anyone other than Ollan will ever figure out that I'm being direct more often than not?_

"If you have seen something," Yosho said, warning surprisingly light in his tone, "You have a duty to report it, to me, to Szash, and to the Conclave."

Ahmu chuckled at that, "Do I, now? You may not be a Forecaster, Yosho, but you know the laws and traditions concerning us. 'For the Forecaster the vision, and the action necessary. For the Conclave the judgment and collection of the price.' No Forecaster can be compelled to reveal what they have seen, or to act on what they have seen, to safeguard our independence and neutrality. Only what we _do_ can be judged before the Conclave, and we are specifically barred from offering our visions in our own defense. The visions of others, yes, but our own are forbidden. You can arrest me, Yosho, and I will stand trial next to Ollan, and we will face our fates safe in the knowledge that we have served our people far better than any others have."

"What have you seen?"

Ahmu shook his head again, "I have seen enough, Yosho. Now, if you will excuse me, I have an apprentice to check up on. She got some rather upsetting news recently, and her brother did not help matters, understanding as he is trying to be."

He brushed past his son, heading for the nearest lift, but Yosho stopped him again, "You arranged that meeting, didn't you? You're the one who suppressed my wards and delayed the alarm when the spy disabled Adept Cobol. Yet another operation you foiled."

Ahmu paused frowning slightly, then turned back to Yosho. "I suppressed no wards, Yosho. I knew the meeting would take place, yes, and that the Caeghlin girl would escape it, at least for a time. But I did not arrange it."

"Then one of your fellows did."

Ahmu shook his head, thinking it over as he explained, "There are not so many of us as you think, Yosho, and none of them discussed arranging such a meeting with me. They would have, if only because the girl is my apprentice now. No, I did not arrange it, though I am perfectly willing to take advantage of it. Her Mastery Trial will be rather harsher than is the norm, and that meeting began it. As for who arranged it… There were _two_ interesting children in that meeting, Yosho. One is of interest to me and my fellows, but we already have her in hand. Who would the Caeghlin girl be of interest to, I wonder?" He chuckled and resumed walking towards the lift, "Tell me, Yosho, how much luck do you think you will have tracking down the Ghosts to ask them?"

He reached the lift and called the car, but before it could arrive, he heard exactly what he expected. "Master Adept Ahmu Elasesh, I arrest you in the name of the Masters of Vision under my authority as Lord Protector, on the charge of high treason. You will be held in custody until such time as a council of your peers can be assembled, where you will be permitted to plead in your own defense. Be warned, I am authorized to meet resistance with lethal force should it prove necessary."

Ahmu turned, to find Yosho standing in the center of the hall, right hand raised and glowing with waiting power. He considered his son for a moment, then sighed and shook his head. "You still fail to surprise me, Yosho."

"I would hardly expect to surprise the Keeper of the Pasts."

Ahmu chuckled, thinking of two conversations the day before. He had been surprised more yesterday than he had in decades, and it had been an invigorating experience, even if the second conversation had been nothing but bad news. "You're not supposed to know that, Yosho. Or at least, you weren't supposed to know that. Fortunately for me, it is no longer true. I found my successor yesterday, and saw no reason to retain the post any longer. Good luck finding them, though. You never did understand the Forecasters well enough to understand how our hierarchy functions."

"I could not care less, father," Yosho said, walking slowly forward. "You are suppressing my communications with Journeyman Turo's units. You will cease such interference or I will consider it resisting arrest."

Ahmu smiled and shrugged. "You can take it however you like, son. You always do, and yet you are so often wrong, to be so confident of your judgment. I am suppressing no communications. Ollan, now, she might very well be up to something along those lines, but by the time you get to her, those lighters will be outside the shield, and the girl will be safely back among her own people."

Yosho glared at him a second, started to turn as if to charge out and try to stop Ollan, then stopped, turned back, and sighed. "You set off the fire containment barricades, didn't you?"

"Something like that," Ahmu said, chuckling. "I could not bear to let all of Ollan's hard work come to naught, after all. As for being under arrest," he pulled a small cube out of his pocket and lifted it between two finger tips. "Not today, Yosho. I may no longer be the Keeper of the Pasts, but I am still a Forecaster, and you know how hard we are to catch. You never could catch your sister, after all. Ah!" Yosho had started to shape a spell, but Ahmu held the cube out further. "You also know how unsecured controller batteries react to magic, Yosho. You used that very trait yourself fifty years ago, didn't you?" Yosho did react to that, glaring slightly, and Ahmu shook his head. "You never surprise me."

He let go of the cube, pulling miniscule magical strands with his finger-tips. It shattered open even as it dropped, revealing the blue diamond of a controller battery, concentrated power bound in a form just shy of self-awareness. Even as it fell, he triggered a teleport of his own, one structured and built to standby specifically for the moment.

The explosion, blowing out every window on three levels of the tower and almost bringing the tower down, was the last bit of cover and confusion needed to distract the Protectors from two lighters going about their business, and two Master Adepts on their way elsewhere.

00000

Chrono opened the door to his apartment with a wave of his hand, then locked it behind him with a twist of magic that barely required conscious effort. He dragged himself over to the small couch in the main room, dropping his bag halfway there, and dumped himself across the couch with a groan. For a few minutes, he just lay there, forcing his mind to go still, feeling tired muscles relax.

He was no stranger to exhaustion, no Enforcer was, even if he had been promoted out of the field. But this was not the exhaustion of combat or long pursuits, not even the tiredness of a drawn-out and complicated investigation. This was the result of long, stressful, and ultimately futile opposition to the Bureau's current policies on one hand, and long stressful and ultimately futile attempts to justify those policies on the other.

The original diplomatic problem had been bad enough, and was still going on. Many more member worlds than Chrono would have believed had felt themselves neglected by the Bureau, even more had chafed at Bureau restrictions, and all of them were making trouble as best they could. The outrage of a few truly aggrieved parties gave excellent cover to the malcontent and power hungry, and there were always factions that opposed the Bureau on every world. Few were talking secession, but they were all making waves, all creating 'brushfires', that ate up Bureau resources. The fact that one of the few real tools the Diplomatic Section had was Operations' ships meant those ships were still being sent on near-useless 'show the flag' patrols. That was bad enough, as attempts to placate the needy and suppress the adventurous were playing havoc with everyone's schedules and manpower.

Worse than that, however, were a small but growing number of worlds that had the exact opposite problem – word of Al Hanthis had finally leaked, in part but not in full yet, and several member worlds had begun questioning – 'informally' at the moment – why the Bureau had not already dealt with the situation. Chrono had hoped that such inquiries would get High Command to finally let him loose, but the exact opposite had occurred. High Command had met the inquiries with precisely-worded responses to the effect that Bureau forces were monitoring the situation, that 'local resources' were containing the matter, and that 'local authorities' had not yet requested Bureau assistance. Never mind the fact that Hayate _had_ requested such assistance – as she was not the head of any Terran government, she was not considered 'local authority', or so Chrono had been informed.

Chrono's response to that particular insult had not made him any friends, may have actually cost him his chances of future promotion, but he was well past caring about that. He and a few others – unsurprisingly, all of them current or former Enforcers – could see exactly what this situation was doing to the Bureau's standing and reputation, what it was _going_ to do the longer it continued. But violating their orders would only worsen the situation, and High Command had long since handed down orders regarding officers slipping past the blockade to Terra. Chrono was tempted to take a fleet of like-minded officers to Terra anyhow, and force the Bureau to send more ships to take them into custody, but he did not think he would get enough time to make a difference on Terra, and was certain whoever the Bureau sent to retrieve him would deliberately ignore the situation in accord with High Commands efforts to placate the louder member worlds.

Chrono and that growing collection of officers had all come to the conclusion that someone as yet unidentified was orchestrating all the unrest, playing on old resentments and long-under-ground factionalism. Whoever was doing it was still being very subtle, very quiet, but it was plainly obvious they were doing everything they could within those bounds to fan the flames. In Chrono's opinion, it had to be the same Bureua officer that had orchestrated the original diplomatic flare-up, but they had not yet managed to get their hands on the initial correspondence from those first worlds.

So he was stuck in half-command of a sector so tied up in 'temporary' diplomatic accommodations and High Command directives that he may as well have not been there. Most of his time was spent on those very diplomatic maneuvers, and he had just returned from Falldown, one of the worlds that threatened to consider secession but had yet to actually do so. There he had spent two days talking with their legislators and military officials, reassuring them as best he could that the Bureau was still the Bureau, that their concerns were being addressed at the highest levels, and that yes, he would increase the patrols in their vicinity.

_Not that any of the slick bastards were willing to pony up the funds for more ships so those 'increased patrols' could actually amount to anything,_ he mentally snarled. No, no one was at the stage of increasing their allocations to the Bureau to offset the costs of their interstellar temper-tantrum, or giving him the resources to answer their demands and still accomplish the Bureau's mission.

After a few minutes lying on the couch, though, he reminded himself he still had to unpack, and should probably check in with Amy. She no doubt already knew he was back at Headquarters, and he was not due back on duty until the next day, but there was probably something explosive and toxic sitting in his in-bin.

He hauled himself to his feet, then snagged his bag and half-carried half-dragged it into the bedroom. His apartment at Headquarters had never been particularly large, not even close to the suites Graham had maintained, mostly because he had never felt the need. He had grown up on ship-board, and was used to the limited personal space there-on, and he had no familiars to provide space for. He did not object to larger quarters on any philosophical grounds, he simply found it personally unnecessary. Fate had mostly shared his view, though Nanoha had convinced her, over the years, to 'expand her horizons'. Now he was just as grateful he still had small quarters – the distance from the door to his bed was shorter.

Once he was unpacked, he headed for the tiny kitchen, activating the comm. screen on his way by and ordering it to contact Amy. The connection chime sounded just as he pulled open his refrigerator, but the voice that came out of the screen was a surprise.

"Hello, Admiral Hallaoun."

Chrono frowned in confusion, and stepped back out into the main room. The screen was live, but the code line at the bottom was gibberish, not Amy's office-code. The woman staring out of the screen at him was also, most definitely, _not_ Amy. She was taller, for one thing, obvious even while she was seated. She was dressed in unrelieved black, a high-necked dress with some sort of netting over it that reminded him of spider-webs, and a black cloth tied across her eyes. It matched her short black hair, and highlighted her pale skin and the glowing tattoos beneath her eyes, and he almost missed the device resting against her shoulder. It was a long staff, the bottom half of it lost off the screen, the top ending in a long three-pronged frame around a clear crystal. She reminded him of Precia, for some reason.

Chrono considered her for a moment, then demanded, "Who are you, and how did you override my comm.?"

She smiled slightly, and a shift in the cloth revealed something glowing beneath her left eye. "While we have met in passing, Admiral, we have yet to be properly introduced, and this is not the time for such things. My associates call me Master Adept, most people call me Witch. You, I'm afraid, are going to have far worse names for me, as do most of those I speak with frequently. As for how I accessed your systems… I have not. I am, as usual, bending the rules as far as humanly possible, and perhaps further than is wise, but I cannot explain how to you, not precisely. You lack the training and the traditions to understand."

"And now you're being insulting," Chrono muttered. _She __really__ reminds me of Precia,_ he thought, _but the face is wrong and she's not… maniacal enough._ "What do you want, and how is failing to answer my questions going to get it for you?"

She laughed softly, giving him a superior sort of smile. "I do not want anything from you, Admiral. Quite the opposite." The smile faded into a serious look, "As Keeper of the Pasts, certain information has come to my attention. It is in my best interests, and my Emperor's, that this information be placed into your hands at this juncture. Legally, I cannot even contact you, but in this instance, I decided to interpret such rules loosely. I can not pass on to you new information, but…" She made a throw-away gesture with one hand, and continued, "I have two things – one piece of intelligence, and one piece of advice on what to do with that intelligence."

That piqued Chrono's curiosity, less because of the titles she used – Keeper of the Pasts was new, but sounded like a fancy title for an historian, and Chrono knew of too many 'Emperors', real and imagined, to be impressed by such a claim – than because of the offer of intelligence. The only reason he could think of off-hand for someone he did not know to offer him 'intelligence' at the moment was if it had bearing on the Terran crisis. "I'm listening."

The superior smile returned briefly. "Second Admiral Durio Triann, Time Space Administration Bureau Diplomatic Corp, was once _Lieutenant_ Durio Triann, Time Space Administration Bureau _Enforcer_. While at that lowly rank, Durio Triann was saved from an untimely death, and given advice and a transfer, both of which saved him from a painful divorce, by one Third Admiral Wilhelm Kriegsen, then captain of the Time Space Administration Bureau warship _Deva_. I believe he transferred off the _Deva_ just days before your friend Shimazu transferred aboard. Since that time, Triann's family and career have grown appreciably, steadily, and happily. His eldest son and daughter are Bureau officers, and his two younger sons are well on their way to the same. He has comfortably overseen the Bureau's diplomatic efforts in Releyas Sector for the last five years."

Outwardly, barely, Chrono managed not to react. Mentally, however, all the anger and annoyance he had built up over the past months finally got a solid grip on his sense of justice, and connections exploded in his mind. It had been obvious from the start, to him and to Investigations, that whoever had set this off had done it to keep the Bureau off Terra. There were only a few people Chrono could think of who would want that, and Kriegsen's name headed that list by a very wide margin. Chrono could not get his hands on Kriegsen, but for months now he had wanted whoever set off this mess, whoever was keeping it going, and as the Bureau's internal and diplomatic situations worsened, that desire had only grown stronger. Whoever had done it, whatever their reason, they had betrayed the Bureau and forced him to betray his friends and his own convictions, and now he had a name to bring to justice.

_No,_ he managed, barely, to restrain himself. _I have a possibility of a name. One random woman is not evidence._ "You have proof of what you are suggesting?"

That smile came back, causing another spurt of annoyance. "Suggesting? I have suggested nothing, Admiral. I merely informed you of a fact that is public record. Though, as I said, I also have some advice. Would you care to hear it?"

Chrono shrugged, "why not? Without evidence, nothing you've told me is worth a damn."

"Do not investigate or arrest him for his crimes against the Bureau," the woman told him. "If you do, he will disappear. You will still get the information he possess, which may mitigate your current diplomatic crisis, but he himself, and all the people whom he utilized to enact this travesty, will vanish."

"The Bureau does not disappear people," Chrono countered.

The smile grew wider, outright patronizing. "My dear Admiral, do you honestly believe that Gil Graham managed his deceit by himself? Yes, he used his own funds, but there is no direct connection between Terran and Bureau economies, only covert Bureau connections maintained for the rare Terra-born personnel such as himself, Takamichi-san, and Yagami-san. He had to use Bureau resources to monitor Yagami-san as a child, Bureau resources to insure the local authorities did not place her in anyone else's care, Bureau resources to support her, Bureau resources to trigger the Book at the appropriate time, Bureau resources to create the device that even now rests in your pocket. Do you honestly believe he did all that, for _five years and more_, without anyone noticing? Without any of the audits you yourself endure on a yearly basis discovering what he was up to? That Wilhelm Kriegsen built an entire warship to pursue his jealousy? Are you truly that naïve? Yet who but Gil Graham paid for the crimes against Yagami-san? Did he truly pay, for all that she forgave him? You have yet to truly meet me, Admiral, but I know you quite well, and I do not believe you to be that naïve, however young. Good day, Admiral, and good hunting."

The woman vanished, and suddenly Chrono found himself glaring at a very confused looking Amy. "Um… Chrono-kun? Something wrong?"

Chrono blinked and shook his head, "Sorry, Amy, I was just chatting with someone else, but I have no idea who. Someone who could override our internal comm. net, at least."

"Is that what happened? I got your call request, but then just a blank gray screen."

Chrono shook his head, "Doesn't matter. She gave me something to look into regarding our predicament. I just wish she didn't look so much like Precia."

Amy blanched at that, asking softly, "Could… could it have been her? Al Hanthis survived the null-space, could she have done so? With all those Jewel Seeds?"

Chrono shook his head, "Al Hanthis has shields, generators, life-support systems. Precia had nothing to protect her from the null-space's draining effects. She's dead. But that doesn't mean there aren't still people out there who admire her, or might even seek to emulate her. Do me a favor, and look into the phrase 'Keeper of the Pasts'. That was the most unique title she claimed, though she also claimed the 'Master Adept' rank the Terran Circles and Al Hantheans use."

"A lot of organizations use the rank, outside the Bureau," Amy reminded him. "It's an old tradition, even if it's not all that precise. But I'll look into it."

"Thanks," Chrono said, then waved tiredly, "Anyhow, originally I was just calling to check in, let you know I'm back at Headquarters. If there's nothing urgent, I'm going to get something eat and then hit the sack."

"Go get some rest, Chrono-kun. Your mother would frown at me if she knew I let you wander around looking that ragged."

Chrono chuckled at that, "Ah, yes, Mother's frowns. We can't have that. I'll see you in the morning, then, Amy. Oh, and if you could, quietly get me everything you can on Durio Triann, an Admiral over in the diplomatic section. I'll want to go over it in the morning."

00000

Hayate frowned at the screen Vita brought up for her for a few moments, then sighed and shook her head. "That shield is going to take all of us to crack, given how many mages they have deployed beneath it."

"It's worse than that," Vita said, highlighting two points just visible through the hazy shield. "Those first portals they used destabilized and collapsed as soon as the Seed were through. In fact, I think they lost a couple Seed to portals that collapsed _too_ soon. But these two here, they're just trace signals now thanks to the shield, but they're two more portals, stable ones. They can reinforce at will, Hayate-sama. Replacement shield platforms, replacement mages, more of either, all of it only a few seconds away."

"More time than that, I think," Hayate said. "They'll have a few mages on standby to reinforce, yes, but not a lot. If we can cut them off and capture them now, they won't have time to get any more reserves into the battle. Excuse me, I'm going to call Hughes and make the arrangements."

Hayate walked out of the monitoring bay and down the hall into the living room. It was early afternoon and classes were just being released, so she and Vita had the house to themselves. Even Shamal was up and about, though her usual smiles and calm energy were missing. Hayate would have been down on the campus herself, save that half an hour before Vita had detected Al Hanthean portals opening in up-state New York. Now she picked up the phone on her way past and walked out onto the deck, dialing Hughes' cell number from memory.

He picked up on the third ring, "Hayate. I'd say good morning, but it's too dark here for me to see the clock."

"My apologies to be calling at this hour," Hayate began.

Hughes' chuckling interrupted her, "Don't worry about it. Esien, from Yellowstone, woke me up fifteen minutes ago, and I'll be heading into the office as soon as we're done talking. All she told me was there was something in upstate New York I would have to deal with."

"The town of Potsdam has been seized by Al Hanthis," Hayate told him. "About half an hour ago. We detected some thirty portals opening, all of which promptly failed."

"Seed," Hughes muttered.

"That is what we think. Five minutes after that, two more portals opened, and have remained steady ever since. Al Hanthean shield platforms, the same as they used over Hong Kong, began appearing followed by Guard mages, and the town center is now under a fairly strong shield. I am gathering my people now. I think we can push them back, if we strike hard enough."

Hughes was silent for a few seconds, and when he resumed, his voice was cautious. "I'll pass the offer up the chain of command, Hayate, but please don't rush in immediately."

Hayate blinked, confused as to why he would not want them to act immediately. There was no concentration of Circle mages in the area, and no conventional forces either. All such forces had been pulled south to New York City weeks before. "We will wait for authorization, I suppose, but we both know it will be coming. Don't we?"

"No, we don't," Hughes said after a second. "Hayate, I asked you to back off and calm down after the _Rhode Island_ strike, but you insisted. The President of the United States and the Joint Chiefs of Staff are not used to being lectured to like school children, and… well, let's just say you earned no points and made no friends there." Hayate sucked in a breath to object, all the anger and fear she had felt after watching that horrific blast rising up again, but Hughes cut her off.

"Don't go snapping at me over it, Hayate. I disagree with you, but I also tried to give you the best chance to make your point, and you railroaded right over me. You don't understand politics, Hayate, not well enough and sure as Hell not American politics, and it's entirely possible that that is now going to bite us all on the ass in the worst possible way. I'll pass your offer up the line, but at the moment I'd give even odds to your assistance being politely declined. By the time New York City is attacked, things will be different, but right now you're not very popular and the Navy thinks they've proven we can handle Al Hanthis without you.

"Get your people ready – who knows, the President might actually engage his brain on something other than getting re-elected. But don't get your hopes up, either. And don't try to pull a hero and show up anyway if the offer's refused. All that will accomplish is to convince the President to eject you from the country. Potsdam we might be able to manage on our own, or the Seed while they're heading overland. New York City is going to be a whole lot worse, though, and I can't protect it without your people. I'll call you when I get some more info or an answer."

He hung up, and all Hayate could do was stare at the phone for a few seconds, shocked beyond words. Hughes had never been that abrupt with her, not even when she was delivering her ultimatum to the Circles. He had been too scared of her then, but now he sounded annoyed, almost disappointed.

Fate stepped out, giving her a concerned look, "Hayate-chan?"

"He… he hung up on me," Hayate muttered. "Hughes hung up on me."

"None of them were very happy with us," Fate said, "But I'm sure they'll do what's smart. Do you want me to get the Volunteers moving?"

Hayate shook herself all over once, looking away from the phone. "Yes, please. I'll get the second-years together. I think we'll take the girls on this one, give them a chance to work together, while Yussef's Myrmidons help Tai-yu look after the school. Could you please have Maunders gather her Circle fellows? We'll leave them here, but I want to let them know what is going on."

It took ten minutes to gather every device mage on the campus, and another half hour to brief them on the situation and put together a more formal plan than Hayate's initial reaction. The plan was simple enough – Fate and Nanoha had proven they could breach the Al Hanthean's mobile shield generators at Hong Kong. Once that shield was down, the Volunteers and Wolkenritter would attack the Guard mages, while the girls evacuated the civilians and held off the Seed.

Hayate was just about to wrap it up when the phone rang. Aria answered it, then handed it to her. She nodded her thanks, and said, "Hayate here."

"You're not going to Potsdam," Hughes said. "The President feels that the United States Army and Air Force will not require outside assistance to deal with one small incursion."

"Hughes…"

"Don't bother, you're preaching to the choir," Hughes interrupted. "Right now, Hayate, the Air Force is putting together a sustained bombing campaign to beat down the shield prior to the Army's arrival. The Army is moving a combined arms brigade north from New York City, and they're taking two hundred Circle mages with them to form wolfpacks. The Army will be on site in eight hours, the Air Force will begin bombing in two and continue until the shield falls.

"If you go there now, you'll be fighting the US as well as Al Hanthis. Yes, you probably have the strength to do it over Potsdam, but you won't be able to do it over New York next week, not unless you abandon London. I tried to talk him into accepting your offer, and I managed to convince Admiral Dahvid, but the President refused. Stay in Kyoto. Watch, study, inspect, but do not attempt to intervene."

Hayate was so shocked, so surprised, she could not begin to formulate a response. Hughes gave her a few seconds, then told her he would be in touch when he had more information and hung up. Her expression alone was apparently enough to tell Nanoha and Fate, and they broke up the meeting, over vociferous objections. Hayate was vaguely aware that Maunders was one of the louder voices, but she was too distracted to pay attention.

She managed to relay the information Hughes had provided, but then closed herself in her office. She had to respond, had to act to try to stop what was happening in Potsdam, to prevent the Al Hanthis attack on New York City. That might delay the attack on London again, but even if it did not, defending one city would be much easier than defending two.

Hughes was right, though. Hayate had no doubt that she and her people could handle the United States armed forces, short of their nuclear arsenal. They could ignore the American's refusal of their assistance, strike at Potsdam themselves, and probably succeed, barring some new surprise by Szash. He was also right that doing so would lose them any chance of intervening in the US ever again.

She had decided, when she retired from the Bureau, that she would abide, as much as possible, by the will of the various governments. She had lived by that to the best of her ability, and even now she found herself loathe to break that standard. As important as Potsdam's situation was, it was not as urgent and critical as rescuing her kids last year had been. The civilians – some seventeen or eighteen thousand, almost half college students – would not be in any danger from Al Hanthis, and the US military would never get through the Al Hanthean's shield.

_I can't afford to ignore their refusal,_ she decided, _God help me, I want to, but I can't. I have to make sure some of us are there for New York and London, and for wherever else Al Hanthis attacks next._

_But… _Inspiration wormed its way into her mind, a crazy idea that might work. _We can't go to Potsdam… but maybe we don't have to._ She shoved up from behind her desk and strode out of her office. Her pace was steady, and she did not pause when she reached the balcony and headed for the stairs to the library's common room. _'Tai-yu, please monitor the Americans, let me know when their ground forces are half an hour from Potsdam. Half an hour, no more.'_

_'Ah… yes, ma'am,'_ Tai-yu replied, surprised and probably confused.

"Signum," Hayate called aloud, "please gather the Wolkenritter, Volunteers, and Second Years. In about seven hours, I'm going to want all of you on aerial defense here at the school. I have an idea to assist at Potsdam, in spite of the Americans' refusal, but it will probably draw a counter-attack from Al Hanthis."

00000

"He did not reject you, Natalia."

Standing before the wide window looking south over Al Hanthis and Egypt, Natalia narrowed her eyes slightly. "No. That would have been easy. And do not call me that."

Standing in the kitchen, Zacha – still somewhat transparent, but far more real than he had been at the Academy – frowned at her a moment, then shook his head. "You expect too much too soon. He just woke, after years of change. He loved Katerina, and your parents and grandparents. Now they're all gone, and for him it has been very abrupt. You last spoke to your parents years ago, for him it was mere minutes before he woke. Give him time, Natalia…"

"Do not call me that," she repeated. "I am aware of the difficulties Sasha faces, and the low probability of his ever comprehending the reasons for our decisions. No, Sasha has not rejected Natalia, but he will not accept us, either. We have our brother back, yet we have lost him as well. This is going to be very difficult for her to deal with. I wish to be alone."

"Give me a moment," Zacha replied.

Natalia smiled at that, feeling him working his own magic. He could not maintain coherence for more than a few hours, less if he worked magic, but the pseudo-core he used was one of her proudest creations, and allowed him to exist independently of her for a time, and his memories stored within Koschei meant she did not have to re-educate him every time she summoned him. She intended Zacha – renamed now that her brother was awake once more – to be a fully realized construct in the future, self-supporting but subordinate as Takashi's Akira was, but for the moment he was still immensely useful.

"The monitors are suppressed," Zacha told her. Before he could fade away, though, Natalia stopped him with a raised hand, and gestured for him to return to the stove.

"Sasha will not accept the price we paid to regain him, that much is clear. Perhaps, however, he will accept a balancing of the scales in recompense. We are not prepared to lay down our life, but there are other ways to make good the debt. First, we must survive Szash's trap and Laura's reprisals over New York. After that… after that, we utilize whoever spoke to Allison to deliver this city to Hayate. You are critical to my plans in this, Zacha. You will find Allison's accomplice for me while I distract the Protectors, make contact with them, and tell me as much as you can about them. I must know them very well indeed, if I am to turn them to our purposes."

"It will be difficult," Zacha told her, "especially given my time limit."

She smiled at that, "Oh, don't worry about that. Your time shall be limitless, for we are Legion. The difficulty will be making contact. Whoever they are, they are justifiably cautious. But they are also not from Al Hanthis. The references were too Terran for them to be from the city. There have been no physical penetrations other than Allison, and none who would have aided her have the skills to conduct such a physical penetration. But a cybernetic intrusion, that is entirely possible. Allina will be seeking vengeance for her better half, and if Allison did not lie to us, she will have Niranjana's assistance. Na-chan, of all people, is fully capable of subverting Al Hanthis' cyber security. So, seek a computer intrusion, seek someone in Al Hanthis' computers who should not be here, someone who avoids the Protectors somewhat, yet avoids the Guard religiously. That is your mission, Zacha. Finish dinner, then you may begin."

Zacha hesitated a moment, then grimaced slightly and nodded. "Yes, Mistress."

"You object?"

"It is not my place."

"We granted you sentience for a purpose, Zacha. If all we desired were a mindless weapon, we would recreate and improve upon the Seed. Speak."

Zacha stared at her a moment, then shook his head. "You have betrayed one allegiance, and thus damned yourself in the eyes of the world. To betray yet another allegiance… you would have nowhere left to turn, Mistress. Al Hanthis will never trust you, no, but they will protect you from those who hunt you. If you betray them as well, everyone will be your enemy and there will be no place to run, nowhere to hide. I will obey you in all things, but this is a bad idea. Just as bad as your first betrayal."

Natalia actually smiled at that, amused that he thought she had anyplace to turn now. "I understand, Zacha, and we have considered that point." She fingered the pouch of coins again, smile widening. "Considered it carefully. We have gone on as we have for Sasha, to return him to us. If we lose him because of our prior actions, it will all have been for naught. We are prepared to lose the world entire to regain our brother. You have your mission. You may release the monitors. I am going to rest, Natalia needs to do some work for Ahmu. Remind her when dinner is ready."

00000

GeshronTyler: Last chapter and this are informational rather than action oriented – things are setting up for New York/London and the climax of the story. Ahmu is, quite deliberately, confusing, both from his own perspective and because of how I write him. Sasha's reaction and Ahmu's comment are both reflections of Natalia's own guilt. Sasha's not happy, but he is her brother, and as Zacha commented above, it's all hitting him cold.

Kell Shock: the subject of the 'empty air' sentence was Natalia, the part in dashes did break it up. Natalia was speaking to the jewel seed, basically. Yup, it was supposed to be 'continued singing'. There are two problems with Natalia being informed of Allison's presence. The most obvious is the fact that nobody trusts her enough to inform her of anything except, _maybe_, Ahmu, and he had his own reasons for keeping her in the dark. The other reason, referenced above, is that Yosho is just enough of a bastard to use her as bait and leave her completely unaware of that fact. As for asking her about Hayate and her students, that would be a good idea, except the only people with real access to her already have that information (Szash and Yosho), or don't care (Ahmu). Szash would not trust anything Natalia told her about something that personal, and Yosho has already done that questioning (off-screen in the days right after she came to Al Hanthis). Information on things like nuclear weapons can be verified, enough to make Natalia's personal observations on the subject somewhat more trustworthy. I intended Sasha to recover ever since I settled on Natalia as the traitor from the school, mostly because it generates the greatest degree of guilt and pain for her. Cidela hasn't quite managed time-travel in the classical sense of _going there_, more along the lines of projection – which Chrono just got to experience the annoying side of, and Al Hanthis… is a very complicated mess, temporally speaking. The lighters the Protectors are using are basic civilian cargo carriers – useful as teleporting is, there are frequently places it can't go or things it can't transport (Seed, jewel seeds, etc), and for a long-term steady-course project like placing the border markers (which is as much surveying as placing), it's simply more efficient to use a field transport. They could teleport from Cairo to the emplacement location, place the beacon, then return & repeat at a new location fifty or a hundred miles away, but then they'd have no idea about the intervening hundred miles. The lighters themselves are unarmed and lack anything beyond emergency crash-shields, and rely entirely on the crew for defense. In the event of a fighter going after the border marking team, a couple of the mages would disembark from the lighters to deal with the threat.

PokemonJoe1: Natalia is in for a world of hurt, yes, but she's warned now, and forewarned is forearmed.

hignum: Cidela's return, as such, is all planned out, but not for a while. She's got a few more stops to make before certain people figure out how to help her. Signum has her part to play, but I'm not sure yet where her battle is going to come. I've got some ideas for New York/London, but they may fit better later on. Natalia's fate is sealed, as are those of Yosho and Szash, all in due course.

Nijiru: Natalia did break, but before her brother woke up. The process simply took some time. I could make some arguments that she was broken even before Hayate began her school, though that would be stretching it. I did have Cidela marked out as 'the Green Lady' before writing Scar the Soul, yes, and that scene was included largely to let me work out how she manifests during her wanderings. Halley is a melding of Allina, HAL, and Master Haen, but not a multiple-personality. Where the merged loyalties will take her is still up for grabs, though.

Templar Prime: Hmmm, while I'm willing to acknowledge that here is a band claiming to be Nightwish out there, they are a poor imitation of what they were. Not that Tarja's solo stuff is as good as Nightwish's was, either. I miss my Nightwish, but Ghost Love Score was an epic way to go out. Sorry for the confusion in Ahmu's discussion of the futures he saw, the one labeled 'third' (… taking her offer to return to school…) should have been and is now labeled 'fourth'. There were four: One she dies fighting Allison, Two she kills Allison but also dies, Three she escaped Allison but burned out and subsequently committed suicide, and Four she attempted to flee Al Hanthis with Allison and was killed. Laura's opinion on fate would probably be a shrug – fate or not, she deals with the now and leaves heavy thinking for those who enjoy it. The thing is, Ahmu wasn't talking about fate, he was talking about possible futures, all different. Allison hasn't seen any of the Star Trek movies, probably, as they're not her style. Regarding the demolition of the platform, I thought it was clear – it was a restaurant frequented by the Guard, open for business at the time of the blast. That scene is supposed to be a bit schizophrenic from her viewpoint – she's essentially committing a terrorist act to cover her meet with Halley, but trying to live up to Hayate's standards by not outright killing anyone. Rescuing those on the platform then distracted the Protectors who were supposed to be capturing her. Regarding the _Rhode Island_, I was unaware of the motto. I simply looked up the Ohio class, and picked one of the newer boats that was also in the Atlantic Fleet, and the dart hit 'Rhode Island'.

Daughter of Ether: I'm glad you've liked the story so far, and thanks for the reviews. Regarding Megan's device activation scene – the violation of Japanese grammar was deliberate. While I freely admit I'm not perfect, I'm something of a grammar nazi myself. In that scene, the 'dueling nee-chan' is because of a conflict in how Lotte and Megan see one another. In strictest terms, Megan was correct and Lotte should call her imouto-chan or, at a stretch, kohai. The thing is, to Lotte's way of thinking, Megan's more of a 'super familiar' than a student (remember, Lotte thinks of Yuuno as a familiar as well). Admittedly it's entirely background to the main story, but including tidbits like that help me feel like there's a complete world instead of just the disconnected events of the story. Lotte and Megan's relationship will come up again just before/during/after London, though it may be a Side Story. As for what parts of Nanoha canon are germaine – anything from the first two series (the series, mind you, not any of the manga our sound stages or that stuff, just the actual animated series), though I will admit to not having a perfect memory. Still, I have those series available and enjoy watching them again, whereas I can't stand StrikerS and can't get interested enough to spend the time finding and then reading the manga.

Filraen: Thanks for reading, and for the reviews, I'm glad you've enjoyed it so far. The Twins' reasoning for choosing a Velka device is them going for a worst-case-scenario: 'look, these are the most difficult to control, but see how easy it is for us?' Also, there's Laura's influence to consider – she is quite thoroughly obsessed with Velka devices and magic. Regarding how Al Hanthis won the war against the rebels but were banished – they didn't. No one really 'won' the war that preceded the Cataclysm, mostly because of the Cataclysm. The thing is, not everyone will agree with that. What you need to keep in mind, in every scene, is that you're getting one character's viewpoint, even if it's written in third person. Nobody knows everything that is going on, and everyone is making assumptions that are wrong based on the information they do have. Thus scenes from different characters, especially characters on different sides, will present conflicting information and analysis. The average lifespan in Al Hanthis varies by mage-strength – stronger mages tend to live longer for a variety of reasons (it's easier for them to take care of themselves, they have better care available due to higher rank, they tend to be in less dangerous positions, they have the experience to mitigate risks, etc). Your average Master Adept (such as Yosho and Szash) can expect to live two hundred years or so. It's not in story, but Ahmu (Yosho's father) is pushing one-eighty, Yosho himself is somewhere around one hundred to one-ten, and Szash is in her fifties. Turo, by contrast, is in his lower thirties, and Uli (Halley's friend) is six or seven. Cidela could be considered Hayate's granddaughter in a round-about way, but it would be odd. Mostly, I always picture Hayate's relationship with the Wolkenritter changing over time into a complicated cross of aunts/uncle (including Hayate as an 'aunt' depending on the occasion). Hayate basically considers Cidela a niece. Natalia's 'Precia' persona has been appearing much more frequently. She used it originally to hide, and she has had more and more reason to do that recently. Now that it's a full-blown separate personality… you'll have to read on to see where that goes:). As for the corrections, thanks and I'll update my files, but I'm not sure I'll ever work up the energy to go back that far – I've found corrections I would have to make to basically every chapter. Updated chapter 37 & the Lost Logia conflict, though. Thanks!


	41. 40 Know Your Enemy

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-40 – Know Your Enemy-

Luen leaned back in her chair, frowning at the screen showing the latest of her team's unified status reports, which she had just finished reading. There had been nothing new in it, nothing she had not already heard from the two journeymen and three apprentices she had co-opted into assisting with her investigation.

As she expected, they had been completely unable to identify the mages she remembered from the warehouse – neither the two Masters, nor the members of their staff. The criminals' disguises had been too complete, too thorough, and she herself had not been expecting anything of the sort at the time. The best she had managed to do was match the faces on some of the apprentices to other apprentices – who had been confirmed in other locations at the time in question, confirmed by their implants, witnesses, and security video. Implant tracking was illegal after one achieved Journeyman rank, but even if it had not been, Luen doubted she would have been able to find the two Masters.

She had gotten one stroke of luck, when one of the apprentices helping her identified the spell used. Blood Penance was not well known by name, but it was a common mythical ability of the Warlords, 'to strike down those who opposed them, unto the tenth generation'. While the 'tenth generation' part proved an exaggeration, it was obviously the spell used, and hyperbole was common when researching the Warlords' more vicious spells. There were records of the Blood Penance in the city's Grand Library, in the Master rank archives. The apprentice had not been able to access the files himself, but he had been able to determine via a lot of work – and some programming Luen declined to look at too closely – how many times those files had been accessed, and by whom. They had been accessed rather frequently _after_ the ritual was used and publicized, but in recent history _before_ it was used they had been accessed by six members of the Conclave.

The problem she faced now was, based on quiet investigation of the six, any of them were just as likely to have been involved, and one of them was Lord Protector Yosho. Any of the six in question had subordinates, from Willan's research and development company and political connections, to Domor's manufacturing conglomerate, to Yosho's Protectors. Any of them could have found two loyal Masters to execute a complicated ritual of questionable legality. Any of them could have made a deal with the Lord Protector or the General to acquire the targeting data they needed, and Willan, at least, could possibly have acquired the needed targeting data from local resources he was quietly cultivating. He was one of those who was already establishing local business ties, and had teamed up with an idle Master who was expert in engineering to reopen and maintain the Suez Canal.

"Okay, so we've got six candidates," she said, glancing over her five-man staff. "Suggestions?"

Journeyman Captain Falgen shrugged, "Ask them? If we start asking around, we'll probably spook them."

Journeyman First Lieutenant Bres shook her head, "If we ask them all we'll get is a run-around. Whoever we spook would be someone with something else to hide that panicked for the wrong reason. Anyone guilty of this that's this good at covering their tracks won't panic. They'll have plans in place to deal with anyone looking into it."

Luen nodded, "True, Bres." That was why she had selected Bres. She was a little low in rank, but she was also a cross-trained Protector, unlike the rest of Luen's team. "We need some way to confirm which of them used the ritual, without scaring them into going to ground."

One of the apprentices asked softly, "What about doing it again?" Luen fixed the young man with a questioning look, making him pale and flinch. Instead of reprimanding him, though, she made a 'continue' gesture. He had to swallow and work himself up to it, but he said, "Could we… I don't know, give them more data and another 'secure location', then catch them in the act?"

"I like it," Falgen commented after a second. "We give them appropriate targeting data – doesn't even have to be real data, just convincing, and arrange for a couple squads of the Guard to be secreted about wherever we arrange for them to perform the ritual."

Bres shook her head, "It won't work. First, it's entrapment, and the Conclave would never stand for it. Second, they'll have to realize the data did not come from the same source as last time. It also won't work if the Lord Protector is the one who enacted the ritual in the first place, like the General thinks. He'll know he's not requesting the ritual, and he'll be more interested in finding out who has the targeting data than in executing it."

"So we don't involve him," Luen said. She still did not think the Lord Protector was involved, but was willing to work on that assumption, in order to prove he was not. "We ask the General for five different sets of targeting data from her archive. Then we pick a couple warehouses in one of the outlying cities taken in the first wave… maybe Tripoli? It's calm enough for this. Someplace outside Cairo, so we don't have to involve the Protectors at all. Bres, get five locations set up, close together so we can place our force centrally. Falgen, arrange two squads from the Guard for the ambush. I'll talk with the General, and put together the messages for the suspects."

Bres asked, "What if one of them follows through who wasn't part of the original ritual? If one of them thinks they have an official but covert request for assistance, we could be entrapping a Master Adept and two Masters who are otherwise innocent."

Luen shook her head, "Couldn't care less. Anyone who would use the Blood Penance deserves whatever the General's going to do to them. We catch them, we question them, and we hand them and whatever they give up over to the General."

"How are we going to get them to talk? They're going to know the limits of what we can do to question them just as well as we do, and we don't have an interrogator available. The Guard ones can't touch a citizen, not even another Guard mage."

Luen raised an eyebrow. "Limits? I told you what the General's orders were – 'intact, and able to be _made_ coherent'. These people used me, used _the Guard_, to commit mass murder, Bres. Murder of civilians and children."

"I understand that, ma'am, but there are laws we cannot break."

"We can't," Falgen commented, "but who knows what the local's laws regarding questioning prisoners are?"

"Something called the Geneva Conventions," Luen said, shaking her head. "The General had it looked into between Cairo and Hong Kong. Those 'conventions' are more restrictive than what we can do, in this case."

Falgen nodded, then asked, "But will our theoretical murderers know that? And will they believe us when we muse in front of them about the possibilities of extradition? After all, we could very well use them to get Japan out of the war, take Hayate and her crew out of the picture, and there goes the strongest force in our way. Yeah, sure, fine," he waved away the incipient objections, "that's nothing but pure hope, the Japanese would gut us as soon as talk to us. But we're the Guard. We're supposed to be muscle-brained political ignoramuses. Diplomacy for us begins with buster spells and ends with shields, everyone knows that. So whoever we catch, unless they're Guard themselves, will believe that we _would_ hand them over to the Japanese. And who knows what those barbarians would do to the people that murdered their ruler and his entire family?"

"I like it," Luen said.

"Even better, it's legal," Bres said, "so long as we don't actually hand them over."

"It's called extradition, Bres," Luen said, "and if I think for one second that handing them over to the Japanese will result in these murdering bastards being punished appropriately, I'll do it, and damn the General's plans. All right, you all know your parts, let's get to it."

00000

Szash looked up as Eri stuck her head in her office. "Yes?"

"We may have a… situation."

Szash grimaced, dreading that term. "Why do you never bring me good news?"

Eri shrugged and strolled in, waving a screen into existence. It showed a fracture in progress, a rather impressive one. Then Szash saw the location coordinates, and choked. "Japan? Hayate!"

Eri nodded, "We're having trouble pulling an identifiable mage signature from the raw power, but what we have matches her magic and her use of it."

"Can we target it with anything?"

Eri shook her head. "Not on this short notice, and the fracture is making the usual teleport lock problems we have with Japan _worse_. This… it started as a Class Three, and it's now a Class Two, though it seems to be stabilizing. We could build four generators off whatever stupidity she's up to right now."

"She's not up to something stupid," Szash said, leaning back and thinking over Hayate as she studied the data. "Hayate's young, but so am I."

"Tche, you're twice her age, General, more."

Szash shrugged. "Close enough, if you adjust for the way the Terrans measure age. By their standards I should be thinking about retirement and Yosho should be letting his grandkids take care of him. Would that were what he's actually doing."

"Yosho doesn't have any grandkids," Eri protested, "he's married to his job."

"He's married to power, which is the exact opposite of Hayate. She's not doing something 'stupid', Eri, at least not for the sake of stupidity."

"An uncontained fracture seems fairly stupid to me, ma'am."

Szash shook her head, "Her magic is strange, remember? It all registers as fractures, of one sort or another. No, she's doing something proactive, something against us. The question is, what? What would Hayate be doing in Japan that would require this much energy?"

"Caeghlin? Between this and Potsdam, she may think we're too distracted to notice her attempts to escape."

Szash shook her head again, "I got a message this morning, from… someone claiming to be the 'former' Keeper of the Futures. She said Caeghlin was already out of the city, among other things. No…" Szash paused, turning over what Eri had said, "not Caeghlin… Potsdam." She brought up another screen by Eri's, patching into the sensor to study Potsdam. It took four minutes to find what she was looking for, faint traces of local instability. "She's going after Potsdam."

"From Japan? You think it's some sort of mass teleport?"

Szash shook her head, "No, we have a read on what her teleports look like from her visit before Cairo, and this isn't it. It's taking too long, for one thing. This is an attack, a frighteningly powerful one. Get the second wave of fortification platforms through, and pass a warning on to the advance force. I don't think she'll be able to punch through two layers of shields, but make sure they keep the first wave of Seed in close to disperse whatever does get through. How's the transfer on the civilians going?"

Eri looked like she was going to argue about that, then paused to study the readings from both screens again. "All right, ma'am, they'll be underway in ten minutes. It's almost time to send them through anyhow. The civilians are mostly evacuated, about seventy percent, but there are a lot of them – two colleges in town, both still in session. Something to consider – those aircraft of theirs haven't been terribly effective, except for the last one that surprised us, but Hayate's surprise is probably going to hit rather close to when the ground troops finally arrive."

Szash waved that away, "Those aren't a worry, unless Hayate completely flattens the shields, which I doubt. Keep an eye on the aircraft, one might be carrying the aircraft or cruise-missile nuclear bombs Morisovitch warned us about, but priority goes to getting both shields up."

"Yes ma'am," Eri said, "I'll start assembling a third set of fortification platforms as well. A strike that gets through the first will probably blow out most of those, possibly some of the second as well. Should be quit the light show."

"Yes, it probably is," Szash agreed, "see if you can get me some live overheads of Japan. Whatever she's doing has to be visible, and I'm curious."

00000

It was disgustingly late, or early depending on your definition, but the Academy's valley was lit up brilliantly. Floating in the air just inside the teleport barrier, Noriko could feel the power shivering in the air. Excess power floating loose was a common side-effect of high-end spells, especially Deva spells. But this time, it was not power leaking from the structure and the mage, it was resonance, awful resonance. It was making the air ripple and flow around the seven figures taking shape in the air. The resonance was getting so bad, Noriko was having to shield Laura from it despite the strongest shields Laura could maintain herself, much to her friend's chagrin.

"Man, remind me never to punk off to Hayate-sensei again," Laura complained, holding her stomach and glaring upwards through the light. "She wouldn't even have to hit me with this thing and I'd be down for the count."

Noriko glanced at her, concerned, then back at the spell. "Do you want to move further away? We can watch from inside a workroom. Hidan would be happier with that." He was standing atop the classroom building, glaring up at her for taking the risk of exposing herself like this. Noriko knew he was glaring, because she could see him clearly every time she looked in his direction, thanks to the light Hayate's spell was generating.

Laura grunted, then refused. "Nah. It'd lose the whole immediacy thing. Here's fine."

An unsteady rent in reality opened, and Takashi stepped out of it, trailed by Akira, who flickered briefly, before stabilizing and glaring up at the light show. They appeared just above the teleport barrier and off to Noriko's left, above the pass to the train-tracks. He studied the scene for a few moments, then drifted over to Signum who was just a few meters above Noriko and Laura. "Would someone mind explaining to me why my musume decided to upend reality today?"

"She is intervening in the Potsdam situation," Signum replied. "The Americans refused us permission to go help directly, so she is helping indirectly."

"Which would be an excellent reason to send me," Takashi replied, then grinned, looking up. "Of course, at this time, I would have to decline such a request. I'm not stupid enough to be on the other end of this spell."

"You've seen it before? She would not tell us what she is doing."

"Seen it? No. But I know it." Takashi chuckled darkly, and gestured broadly. "Those figures forming out of power and will are representative of seven angels, Cherubim, the very Voice of God."

"Oh, crap," Noriko heard Laura mutter.

Looking over, Noriko found Laura was staring at Takashi, paler than she had been a moment before. "Laura? What is it, Laura?"

"And the Seventh Angel poured forth his bowl, saying, 'It Is Done'," Laura replied. "She's triggering Armageddon."

"Very good, little Paladin," Takashi called down, "you know your religious references."

"Uh, hello, Christian! Well, technically, Mom and Dad aren't real determined about that stuff. But still! This is bad!"

"Just watch. We are safe enough, here," Takashi said. "The distortion and interference from the spell will defeat any attempt to launch a strike now. I am rather curious, though… Sara never would attempt this spell. It was too much of a spectacle, there was really no target worthy of it, and it plays merry hob with our linker cores. I sensed it forming all the way from Alexandria. In this case, though… I'm guessing she wants the range over power?"

"That was what she hinted at," Signum replied sourly, "but she is being remarkably uninformative about this. Also, arcing the strike around the planet will require a great deal of the energy."

"It's still going to be a monstrous impact," his grin returned. "That should be a sight to see. Akira, go record it for me, but don't get too close. I don't want to have to reconstitute you again."

_'Hey, Noriko.'_ Allison's mental voice distracted her from Takashi. _'What's wrong at the campus? I can't get a lock for teleport anywhere closer than Tokyo Bay!'_

_'Allison! You made it out?'_

Noriko could hear Allion's derisive snort, _'Well, yeah. Even made a bit of a mess to keep the bastards on their toes. But __why can't I get home__?'_

_ 'Hayate-sensei is… sending a message, to Al Hanthis and the Americans. You might want to wait until it's over.'_

_'Ah, damn, I bet it's really awesome to see, isn't it?'_

Noriko shook her head slightly, staring up at the incandescent white figure amidst the forming angels. The Cherubim were facing outwards, robes and feet now solid and distinct, everything from the lower torsos transparent but distinctly formed. Hayate-sensei floated in the precise center of their circle, rotating slowly, Reinforce in her right hand, the Sword of Light in her left. There was no plainly visible connection between her and the forms, but Noriko could almost see reality twisting from Hayate-sensei to her constructs. _'It is terrifying, Allison. Utterly terrifying. No one person should have such power.'_

_'Sucks to be us, then. I'm inbound by air, since I can't get home the easy way. I'll be there in… an hour or so? See you then.'_

_'I will let everyone know,'_ Noriko relayed.

"Signum-sensei," she called, while also sending it telepathically to everyone except Hayate-sensei. No one beyond her immediate vicinity would be able to hear her over the dull roar of turbulence and resonance. "Allison just contacted me. She made it out of Al Hanthis, but could not teleport closer to here than Tokyo. She's flying direct now, says she'll be here in an hour or so."

"Good news followed by bad," Takashi said, then jerked his chin up, "Hayate is faltering. She cannot sustain this load much longer."

"What will happen if she does not complete the spell?"

Takashi shook his head, "I have no idea. Sara never let me look at the actual structure of Armageddon, only the overviews. She was afraid I would use it."

From within the half-formed angels, Hayate-sensei's voice sounded, shaking through the turbulence. "I break the Seventh Seal, and thus set loose Hell itself upon my foe! Armageddon… _Arise_!"

The gathered figures shuddered, then unraveled, all the gathered energies spiraling about Hayate-sensei, rising up. The flows merged rapidly then burst upwards into the sky. The painstakingly built figures flowed away far more rapidly than they had formed, but not quite completely. The swirling mass became a cone, then a lance of light launching into the darkening sky. Noriko could just barely make out the beam arcing over, just a little east of north, before even that brilliant light was lost with distance.

00000

In eight hours, the United States Air Force accomplished next to nothing against Al Hanthis' seizure of Potsdam. The initial strike by a squadron of F-15 Eagles was utterly smashed by a quartet of Guard mages. The Guard intercepted them some twenty miles from Potsdam, and the last plane went down on the shield itself seconds after releasing its load of iron bombs. The combined impact and detonation destabilized the shield locally for a few seconds, but did not bring it down. Most of the crews ejected, but four pilots and two weapon systems officers died with their planes, and five others landed within range of the Seed patrolling the perimeter.

After the first F-15s, two more tactical strikes were sent in, meeting similar fates. No pilots went down over the town itself in the later strikes, but two more squadrons were completely destroyed. A pair of F-117 Nighthawks tried to slide in with thermobaric bombs between the second and third tactical strikes. The thermobarics would be less effective in open air than the enclosed bunkers they were designed for, but still more effective, pound for pound, than conventional bombs. Unfortunately for the F-117s, Al Hanthis did not utilize radar to detect incoming aircraft, and both planes were destroyed well short of their target.

As had proven the case innumerable times since the 1950s, the venerable B-52 proved itself the most effective strike aircraft in the arsenal. Flying at forty-five thousand feet, the Guard apparently missed the huge plane's approach, or dismissed it as civilian traffic. One of the ancient aircraft passed ten miles west of Potsdam an hour before the Army arrived, cavernous bomb bay full of JDAM bombs. Guided by GPS receivers, almost every bomb hit the shield in a tremendous rolling blast that still shook the ground like an earthquake. The Al Hanthean's shield failed under the bombardment, but flickered back into existence within ten minutes, with the Army force still forty minutes distant. A second, heavier strike was ordered, planned for two hours later. Long before then, Hayate's contribution to the battle arrived.

Four things preserved the Al Hanthis force in Potsdam that cold February morning – range, planning, luck, and restraint.

The first and most critical was simple range. For a spell crafted by a single human being to reach across such titanic distances was an incredible achievement in and of itself, and a large fraction of Armageddon's terrible power was expended in transit, arcing the path of a beam meant to be ruler-straight, and containing all that power while it traversed the distance. What reached Potsdam was still a world-ending strike, but distance attenuated it.

The second element, planning, was readily apparent. After distance, the two layers of shields generated by two groups of fortification platforms absorbed most of what remained of the Armageddon strike. It shattered the first shield in under a second, burning out all ten platforms moments before vaporizing them. The second shield, in place minutes after the B-52 strike, held for almost two seconds, and five of the fifteen platforms survived their shield's destruction and the overflow of the spell.

Luck played its part as well, on several levels. The Seed activation crews had hit their stride within three hours of arrival, and almost six hundred Seed were active. While they had been deployed at ground-level as a last-ditch effort at dispelling any over-flow from the second shield layer, they were not high enough to interfere with either shield. With the Guard mages occupied maintaining their own shield over what remained of the town's population and their temporary headquarters, the Seed were free to roam at will within the confines of the town. Most of them, sensing the magic of the Armageddon spell long before it arrived, found ways to go upwards in spite of their orders, climbing buildings and trees, looking for the mage who's signature did not match their recognition programming. The last stage of the Armageddon strike washed over the Seed and, first locally and then generally, destabilized even as it overcame their innate immunity and seared them out of existence. The precisely choreographed energies broke free and, while the resultant blast was impressive, it was unfocused and disbursed, instead of a concentrated hammer.

Lastly there was Hayate's restraint. She had no wish to destroy the town of Potsdam, no wish to kill its citizens, or even the Al Hanthis invaders. She had little to no way to judge how much power Armageddon would require for its course and its target, but did know she would have to punch through one automatic shield and however many Guard mages were present, in order to give the Americans their opening. So instead of targeting Potsdam itself, she targeted a point in space at an altitude of some fifty feet above the center of town, and shaped the spell's release into a lateral circular blast. The destabilizing influence of the Seed merely accelerated what she had built into the strike.

Potsdam was built in hill country, at the low point amidst several hills, and Armageddon's blast front flared horizontally before loosing all cohesion and devolving into a spherical blast. The private university up the hill took the most damage, almost every structure was flattened. Taller buildings in town lost upper floors and towers, causing structural damage sufficient to collapse several of them. Once the blast lost cohesion, the resulting explosion washed over the town shattering windows, cracking brick and concrete walls, and outright demolishing lighter construction. Most of the buildings that survived the blast would subsequently be condemned as irreparable.

For the Al Hanthis mages holed up in the center of town, using the private university's town campus administration building for cover, it was an awe-inspiring display of raw power and lunatic ambition. Their collective shield over the building's ground floor held, as only the destabilized final blast reached it, and the evac-portal only fluctuated, it did not fail, but they knew of only one spell that could rival Hayate's strike, and only the General could call that down. For their fellows out at the public university campus, there was somewhat more fear as they had a clearer view of the attack, but there were more of them and they had a vital mission – almost a third of the town's population was still there, under the second team's shield as they were evacuated to Egypt. Szash's orders on civilian casualties had been clear and draconian, and none of them were willing to let her down, even if the insane locals did not seem to care about such things.

In the end, it was the Seed who came off the worst. Some four hundred were destroyed by Armageddon, including three of the seven Alphas that had come through in the initial insertion. The remaining four Alphas and three hundred or so normal Seed survived the strike, unable to get high enough to be caught in the initial stages of the strike, and rugged enough to survive the physical effects of the destabilized blast.

Worst of all for Hayate and the Americans, the stasis pods used to store and transport the Seed functioned precisely as designed. Lacking the magic-resistance of their slumbering cargo, the pods' solid outer shells and fluid-filled interiors absorbed the blast without harming the Seed inside, and, in the face of such an attack, they collapsed, breaking apart in precisely calibrated patterns. The containment fluid flowed away and, slowly, six thousand Seed began to struggle awake, lacking in mission, lacking in guidance, driven only by their fundamental programming.

Ten minutes later, mission essentially accomplished, the Al Hanthis forces withdrew from Potsdam completely.

00000

Hecht shifted in his foxhole again, then flinched when Schaunberg kicked his left heel. "Sst," the sergeant hissed, "be still."

"This is lunacy," Hecht hissed back. "They are going through France." Seed had been sighted days before, moving north through Italy, filtering northward in small groups through wilderness areas, sewer systems, swimming the coast. Some had even been reported following less-traveled roads, or moving through rural yards in the dead of night. The battalion had been mobilized to intercept any that entered or passed through Germany, though Hecht thought – and prayed – that none would come through. The creatures – fit to slaughter armies, according to rumors and news out of Hong Kong – were headed for England, after all, and that meant the French coast, not Germany.

"They crossed Switzerland," Schaunberg replied, still whispering quietly enough the men in the neighboring foxholes would not hear, "which we share a border with. Some will come this way, headed for Belgium."

"We still should not be here. Trying to ambush creatures like this? In this terrain?"

"Are you a colonel, now? A general, to make such decisions? No? Then _be still_! We do not know when they will come through this stretch, and I do not want our ambush to be given away by your caterwauling like a babe!"

Hecht started to protest again, but Schaunberg jabbed a finger at him, glaring, so he subsided, verbally. Mentally he continued to berate the pea-brained idiots that sent the Bundeswehr – especially _his part_ of the Bundeswehr – into the deepest reaches of the Palatinate Forest Nature Park to try and ambush what were apparently the most dangerous predators the world had ever seen. They were still finding some in Hong Kong, and loosing entire companies when they did, from the sound of it.

Hecht was no fool. He had seen the coverage of Hong Kong, seen the reports of these 'Seed of Leviathan'. Even the superhuman mages feared these things. The Chinese had proven it took armor and explosives just to slow them down, and the Americans had proven it took outright nukes to actually stop them. A mechanized infantry battalion – currently sorely lacking the (comfortably armored) vehicles needed to qualify for the 'mechanized' part – was not going to do more than give the damn things a hearty meal. Even with the ridiculous number of extra Panzerfausts and MILANs they had all been issued, Hecht saw no point in being out there.

The Panzerfaust 3s everyone had been issued – one launcher and four warheads each, for their forward platoon – were scant comfort. The platoon had also been issued a pair of MILAN launchers, which were only somewhat more heartening. According to rumors out of Hong Kong, only massed volleys reminiscent of the Napoleonic wars had managed to even touch a Seed of Leviathan. Yet in order to catch the Seed that had been studiously avoiding habitations, the platoon was spread out over about hundred meters of front, deep in un-traveled reaches of an overgrown forest, and the Lieutenant had his squad way down at the other end of the position. By the time they saw the damn Seed, the blasted things would be on top of them. Even worse, this was apparently every Panzerfaust 3 in the arsenals, from every unit in the Bundeswehr. There would be no resupply, if they survived long enough for such concerns.

A crackle in his ear distracted him, the radio kicking on. "Contact," Gruber murmured. Hecht tensed, and scrabbled to get his launcher in hand. Gruber was four meters from his position, the next foxhole to his left.

Schaunberg kicked him again, while replying, "Where?"

"Due south my post," Gruber replied, "rock outcropping, fifty meters. It's on all fours, crawling around the west side of the rock. Sniffing the air, looks like. I think it's a scout. Permission to engage?"

"Negative," Schaunberg replied, "pack hunters, remember? Lunden, call the Lieutenant, everyone else, eyes open and out. Find the rest of the pack."

Hecht would have done that, but he wanted to be certain of the known threat before he went looking for more. The problem was, he could only see the top of the outcropping Gruber reported. There was a tree and what looked like a holly bush in the way from his angle. Schaunberg was looking dead-on at the tree, but Hecht could see the outcropping over the undergrowth. Fingering his Panzerfaust's trigger, he lined the launcher up on the outcropping, waiting, feeling the tension rising.

"Sergeant," Gruber said, "I think it's one of the big ones, the leaders. It just passed the ranging stake I left out, it's got to be over two meters if it was upright. Permission to fire?"

"Negative," Schaunberg repeated. "Platoon, report in, any further contacts?"

Response was an immediate chorus of, "Negative."

Hecht grimaced, gripping the Panzerfaust missile tighter. He tried to force himself to scan, to check for other Seed, but was too nervous about the one he could not see ahead of him to turn his head far. Something indistinct moved on the other side of the bushes, and he almost pulled the trigger, but discipline held. "Possible sighting on Gruber's contact," he muttered, not bothering with the radio.

The first answer was a huff of air, blowing across the back of his neck under the edge of his helmet. His own breath froze and his blood congealed. Then Schaunberg saved him, lunging out of the foxhole and shouting into his radio, "Contact to rear! They surrounded us!" The roar of his G36 on full-auto deafened Hecht even as he dove for the bottom of the shallow foxhole.

The Seed behind Hecht lunged silently at Schaunberg, five-five-six ammo whining off its scales. A passing swipe caught Hecht's harness and ripped it while flipping him into the wall of the foxhole. Stunned for a moment, Hecht was amazed a ricochet did not hit him immediately even as he felt something tug at his leg and side. Most of him was praying to God as he slid down and rolled onto his back, struggling to get the too-long Panzerfaust around and aimed. It was going to burn the hell out of his back and shoulder, with nowhere in the bottom of the trench for the backblast, but that was better than getting eaten.

He had to tune out Schaunberg's screaming to get the weapon around, and the Seed was just turning back towards him when it lined up on the thing's chest. "Let's see you dodge this," he muttered, and pulled the trigger.

00000

Ganen grimaced at the screams and explosions. It was not difficult for him to imagine the picture on the ground. There were no mages in that force in the woods, which was largely the reason he had directed the Seed towards it. But the Seed would not be merciful to those troops because of a lack of mages – quite the opposite, those troops were the target of this particular pack. The creatures had orders to acquire live prisoners, but they lacked the judgment and restraint of humans, and Ganen expected few to no prisoners, since the locals had not been smart enough not to resist.

The fight was mercifully brief, from the sound of it, maybe a minute and a half of explosions and gunfire. Ganen gave the Seed another two minutes to secure the site, but he was facing a time-crunch himself. The nearest local force was five minutes away on foot and he had until then to get what he was after. The nearby forces would probably delay, fearing being ambushed by Seed themselves, but they would not wait long. So he dropped into the trees himself, aiming for the peculiar null that was the greatest concentration of Seed.

Just as he reached ground-level something large lunged at him and slammed into his shields, causing them to fail almost instantly. Ganen shouted in surprise and twisted away, feeling claws rake across his side. The Seed did not get a grip, though, and Ganen rolled away and rocketed upwards again. He glimpsed more Seed piling onto the one that attacked him, then branches blocked the view. For a few seconds there was a silent brawl below him, no sound but heavy bodies slamming into things, followed by silence.

Cautiously, Ganen returned to ground level, more shields up and a teleport ready, but the remaining Seed – six of the original eight, including the Alpha, all but the Alpha damaged – were spreading out to a perimeter again. The Seed that had attacked him was dismembered, still twitching, but he could see why it had done so – there was a fist-sized crater blasted out of its chest, right into the heaviest protection around the creature's brain. It had not, quite, penetrated the brain case, but would have rattled the construct badly, possibly enough for it to forget its recognition programming.

"Gods, I hate these things," he muttered, glaring cautiously at the other Seed. That was not a comforting sight, even without them attacking him. One was missing its lower arm, another had a chunk taken out of its leg and a long wound across its back, and the rest were similarly torn up. "What in all that's holy could do that? Seed are supposed to be indestructible." He had not quite believed the analysis reports of the Hong Kong raid, not believed such primitive people could actually hurt, let alone kill, a Seed. Seeing proof that they could made him far more nervous about the entire war.

He stared for a few seconds longer, then shook it off. Rifling through the trenches the infantry had dug, he pulled as many examples of their weaponry as he could find. He thought he figured out what they used to injure the Seed – A long irregular gray tube with a green bulb at one end with a long blunt spike out the tip. There were a ridiculous number of such weapons, one per trench at least, and they were the only things big enough to look like they could harm a Seed and numerous enough to have damaged so many Seed at once, so he figured they were what he was looking for. The Morisovitch girl had talked about missiles and grenades, and these fit the bill, but the General wanted everything, so he collected everything.

He found a single survivor badly burned in the bottom of one trench, and teleported him directly back to Cairo for care. The rest of the soldiers had suffered the fate of all those who tried to fight Seed in close quarters. Enemy or not, Ganen cursed the commander that deployed them here, in terrain that gave the Seed every advantage. There was no excuse for such stupidity in a commander.

Once he had them all collected, he gestured towards the Alpha. "Return to base for repair." The Alpha bowed its head briefly, then turned and silently loped off into the woods, the other Seed following it.

Ganen could hear people moving in the woods now, and gathered the salvaged weapons with a gesture. The magic wrapped them into a convenient bundle, and he lifted off before the local reinforcements could spot him and start taking shots. _'Control, this is Journeyman Ganen. I have the local weapon examples the General wanted. Returning to Cairo via teleport.'_

00000

Author's Notes: JDAM stands for 'Joint Direct Attack Munition', a sleeve mounted on a 'dumb' bomb that utilizes GPS to guide the weapon to a programmed target point – it's the cheapest way to get a 'smart' weapon, and effectively as accurate as laser-guided munitions. The Panzerfaust 3 is Germany's current home-grown equivalent to the Russians' RPG-7, though it has a 40-133% better penetration vs. steel armor than the RPG-7, depending on variants compared. The MILAN is an old French-designed anti-tank missile fired from a tripod and wire-guided to the target. Both are currently deployed by the Bundeswehr. Despite its size and fixed-position firing tripod, the MILAN actually has a fair chance ('fair', mind you, not 'good') of hitting a Seed, so long as the shooter can keep his sight on the Seed, and its big heavy warhead will definitely piss off said Seed. 'Five-five-six ammo' is one of the usual ways of referring to ammunition caliber, in this case 5.56mm assault rifle rounds.

Clarkson University is in Potsdam, one of the better engineering schools in the US. There's the main campus up on a hill across the river from the town to the south-west, and an administrative campus (the original University) in the town center. State University of New York (SUNY) Potsdam is south-east of town. The two universities are basically Potsdam's reason for existing.

00000

Daughter of ether: Natalia's Precia persona is quite deliberately modeled on the original. Fate would not react well to an encounter with the persona, but the persona/personality is perfectly well aware of that. They'll both avoid Fate as much as possible (and remember, Natalia's going to New York, while Fate and Laura are assigned to defend London).

Templar Prime: Cidela's particular issue is precisely a 'time-travel' one, namely that she's become somewhat disconnected from reality in the Void – which is outside of time. Unfortunately, if that's not your cup of tea, it'll get a little worse before it gets better. Hope this was exciting enough for you.

hignum: While I understand the desire to ask questions, you have to know I'm not going to answer anything along the lines of 'does X die?':). Hayate was planning the Armageddon strike, an attempt to demonstrate to Al Hanthis the futility of this war. Shamal does have two things to help her through Cidela's predicament – her existing family of Hayate and the other Wolkenritter, and the fact that all of them believe Cidela's return is only a matter of time. Updates are a bit of an issue recently as I've gotten ideas for other fics that are distracting, and I'm planning an attempt at NaNoWriMo. But the next chapter is mostly done, and there are two Side Stories in progress both set around the New York/London battle.

Filraen: Hayate's using a loophole – the Americans told her not to go to Potsdam, so she isn't, she's just striking at Al Hanthis from Japan, where Noriko's promise to the world holds greater sway. 'Outsider' viewpoints like Singh in Hong Kong & Hecht's above will show up a few more times – I've got one planned for London and several short ones for later battles. I've only got one more 'visit' planned for Cidela, but you'll have to wait for it, it's a bit away. You're right about both corrections, which I've posted – thanks!

Kell Shock: You and Filraen found the 'quite/quiet' one (should've been 'quiet'), and the 'city Hayate' one (deliver the city _to_ Hayate), so thank you for that! As for 'comm.', blame MS Word's auto-correct features – as 'comm.' is a short-hand for 'communication' or 'communication device', and thus technically should have the period, though it's commonly dropped. I won't comment on the future the Forecasters attempted to avert by arranging Allison's escape, because they very well may have failed to avert it – not every Forecaster is working with them, and there are past Forecasters and future Forecasters that may very well have been working at cross-purposes, or deeper purposes. The Witch that spoke to Chrono is one of those other Forecasters, though her purposes are somewhat different from Ollan's and Ahmu's. Hayate's strike was aimed at Potsdam (remember, she's unwilling to risk causing a dimensional dislocation by half-destroying the city), and mobile shield generators cannot match the city's shields. Lastly, just because Ahmu's no longer publicly walking around doesn't mean he's gone – who do you think gave Yosho his first lessons in being a manipulative bastard?:) He's still got a part to play.

Haskell: Here's the latest chapter, and I'm glad you've liked it so far. Thanks!


	42. 41 Welcome to the Jungle

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-41 – Welcome to the Jungle-

Allison was actually looking forward to London, when Nanoha teleported the British Force from the school. She had teleported out of the Protectors' lighter almost the instant it was beyond the city shield's interference, only to be stymied in trying to reach the school by disturbances that kept destabilizing her teleport. The mood on the campus when she finally got home had been murderous, and she had thought it was aimed at her for being late or not communicating earlier, until she found out about the Americans' response to Potsdam.

She had not had much time to add her two cents to that particular issue, before everyone and their brother started debriefing her. In the four days since, the only time she had been able to count on having to herself had been the shower and sleeping, and not always then, given Laura's penchant for appearing in the most random places, and the eagerness of her classmates to make sure she was all right and, oh-so-incidentally, to find out anything they could about Al Hanthis. Allina had been particularly pushy about finding out about 'the imitator', though unlike everyone else she refused to refer to the network ghost as 'Halley'.

None of the debriefing had been hostile, no one thought she was holding anything back, and no one had yet gotten to critiquing her performance. But the constant questioning, constant reviewing, and expert efforts to extract every last thing she had seen, encountered, felt, thought, and possibly imagined was draining. She had thought she was prepared for such things after her many times explaining her latest fight to her father, but this had been on a whole other level.

The people doing the debriefing had been an interesting mix, from Allison's perspective. The two Egypt experts Hughes had sent, along with someone else from the American Embassy in Tokyo, were mostly silent observers. The only one of that group to actually ask questions was the man she had pegged for CIA from the original pair of 'experts'. There was also Vita-sensei, Tai-yu-sensei, and one of the Bureau Volunteers, an A-rank Enforcer named Reus. The Japanese sent a pair of Ground Self Defense Force officers, who brought with them a representative from the Chinese Embassy who was most-definitely-not-military-intelligence-just-ask-him.

But even that determined bunch had yielded to Hayate's insistence that Allison be left alone the day they all left for London, and the night before they left. Hayate-sensei had offered to let Allison stay back and rest after her infiltration. She had been in the midst of strongly suggesting that Allison remain behind, when Allison flatly refused. "You and everyone else are going into harm's way, Hayate-sensei," she had said, "and you need every mage you can get. I'm fine, good to go, and looking forward to doing something other than skulking about and running away." After that, Hayate told her to take the night before they left to relax – no training, no studying, just relax and de-stress. Allison spent most of that night prowling around in the woods, hunting Meghan and being hunted in turn.

Now, as they burst into the air over London, she sighed in happiness. It was two days before the Seed were expected to arrive at London's official city-limits, before the Guard would show up, but now she was going to get to do something. That was worth gold, even if it did mean she would be defending the English.

_'Girls, go with Fate to check in to the hotel,'_ Nanoha ordered. _'Volunteers, Dogs, with me, please. We'll check in with the British commanders and arrange to scout the city and their positions.'_

Allison watched the larger force fly off with only a little envy. Unpacking was necessary, but hardly the most exciting task. She also did not quite trust the Circle device-users, who had taken on the 'Black Dogs' moniker for themselves after Laura slipped up and called them 'lambs' to their faces. The Circle mages were behaving, mostly, but their skills with their devices were sub-par, and, like all Hayate's second-years, Allison expected betrayal from the Circles at any time.

Following Fate down and north towards the hotel the British Army had arranged for them, Allison considered what she could see below her. London had much more warning than Hong Kong, but was not as thoroughly evacuated. A lot more of the British population had elected to remain in the city, despite official orders, and the government was having a devil of a time convincing people that their hunting shotguns were not going to help against Seed and Guard mages. Worse, in their way, were those taking advantage of the evacuated city to help themselves to other people's homes, but the Army was putting a stop to that through simple all-pervasive presence.

There were a lot of troops moving about down there, mostly on foot but a fair amount of military vehicles. Unlike Hong Kong, the longer lead time meant there were quite deliberate barricades being built across roads, in parks, against open-work fences, anywhere a kill-zone could be created. Most of those working and walking down below stopped to watch them pass, and a couple of the soldiers pointed weapons in their general direction, but no one actually fired.

Fate got them checked in, and the six of them – Fate, Allison, Juliet, Megan, Allina, and Laura – took a few minutes to get themselves settled in. Signum had decided that, given the Guard's manifest problems with close quarters combat, it made sense to splat their close-quarters combatants into two groups, one in each city. The Wolkenritter would be with Hayate-sensei over New York, while Laura and the girls were assigned to ground support in London under Nanoha and Fate. Signum's plan broke down a little there – the students were all on ground-support duty, not supposed to go after the Guard, but all of them knew that was a polite fiction. The Guard would reach ground level at some point, and the students would be the best bet to face them. Allina was sort of the odd-girl-out, but she had refused to remain behind with Niranjana. Unlike her mistress, Saraswati was mostly repaired, enough to be functional, and Allison had no doubt the two of them had something nasty planned for the Guard that was going to be handled by Allina in London.

The real surprise to Allison, and apparently to Laura, had been Noriko. Looking back, Noriko and Hayate-sensei had given hints all along that Noriko would be remaining at the school, but the day before they left she had finally outright stated it. "I'm the last of my family, Laura," she said, "Emperor of Japan. I cannot put myself at such a risk. Bad enough if I died – my death would be honorable and rouse Japan even further, however difficult it would make things for the government afterwards. But what if I were to be captured? What if Al Hanthis took me prisoner? I can't go. I wish I could, and when the time comes to strike at Al Hanthis itself I will be there, but I can't go for anything less than that."

Laura had just stared at her for a good twenty or thirty seconds, and Noriko had been fidgeting before she actually reacted. Laura had slumped a little, then stiffened and set her shoulders. "All right, then. Juliet, I'm gonna need you for at least an hour, go over my plans for London. You, too, Allison. You two are going to have to pick up the slack…"

"Wait, wait, Laura," Noriko interrupted. "I'm not going, I didn't say anything about you."

Laura shrugged, "I can't protect you from half the planet away. If you're not going, I'm not going."

That actually left Noriko flabbergasted. It had been obvious since Hong Kong that Laura was itching for another go at the Guard, and she had been pushing her impromptu class hard to prepare for London. The fact that she had just let it go, so easily, was as surprising to Allison – and, manifestly, to Noriko – as Noriko's initial announcement had been. But Noriko had recovered quickly, smiling and shaking her head. "Laura, I am going to be _here_, on the campus, the whole time, helping Tai-yu-sensei with sensors and the teleport systems. There is nowhere in the world safer for me than here, even with all of you off in New York and London. You can best protect me by defeating Al Hanthis, by fulfilling the pledge I made to the world and fighting them wherever they go. You are going to London, Laura, with my blessing."

The conflicting emotions on Laura's face had been something to behold, and Allison honestly wondered if she would ever live down her response. She had burst into tears and tackled Noriko, right in the middle of the dinning hall in front of classmates, Volunteers, Dogs and all.

Now there was none of that, just bubbling excitement and focus. Even Allison could feel it. As she had told Hayate-sensei, she was looking forward to doing more than skulking about, and while they were not supposed to go hunting for the Guard, Allsion had no doubt she would get her chance to rattle their cages.

Once the girls had their over-night kits stowed in the two rooms they would be sharing, Laura got Fate's permission and four of them went scouting, leaving Allina to set up her computers in the hotel lobby. Laura and Megan went west, Allison and Juliet went east, flying along just above average roof-top height. Going higher was a bit too dangerous, as the Royal Army or Air Force – Allison was not sure which – was running helicopter exercises over the city, as well as using helicopters to lift in material from the northern half of the city to the at-risk southern half.

At Juliet's insistence, they followed Nanoha's instructions and checked in with the units setting up throughout the city. Where the Chinese had sent a single massive armored infantry force into Hong Kong, and planned from the start to sacrifice parts of the city when and as necessary, the British were taking a more drawn-out approach. Every unit in the British Isles and Europe that could be brought home in time had been activated and deployed south of London. As the French, Swiss, Germans, Italians, and other Europeans had done, the military had deployed small scouting forces and was coordinating with local civilians to locate the Seed infiltrating their way north, though none were on the island yet.

The Royal Navy (they would grudgingly admit, later, that there were some French ships drifting around as well) was having a field-day in the Channel, taking targeting from shore observers to rain fire on any Seed that approached the beaches. The Seed were fast and nimble, but the Navy was deploying trios of destroyers, with rapid-fire cannons to blanket target coordinates. The Navy would have to pull out once Seed started getting in the water in numbers – no one wanted to find out if ships could outrun Seed in confined waters like the Channel – but until then, they were quite enjoying doing their part. As one captain had quipped, "You want me to shell France, with the permission and assistance of the French navy? Who did I bribe to get this assignment and do they want more?"

The city of London itself had been placed into the hands of the five regiments of the Household Division – including the battalions of the Royal Guard Division, as the Queen had 'declined to depart the city at this time'. After watching Noriko in action, and how easily she swayed the Japanese populace, Allison could appreciate the Queen's decision, even if she personally thought it a bit silly – an eighty-nine year old woman was not going to be much help, unless she had something like the Kamikaze under her sleeve. The really funny part was, the Royal Guard Division was still keeping their traditional sentry routine in their red coats and bear-skin hats – and had announced that they would continue to do so through the battle, as a gesture of defiant pride.

The crazy-quilt of battalions, regiments, and divisions, made checking in with each somewhat difficult. They had a procedure, though, thanks to Vita-sensei – land near some troops who weren't going somewhere, walk up all calm and polite like, introduce themselves, show the passes sent to Japan for them, and ask for directions to the nearest unit command. It worked, mostly, especially when Allison let Juliet do all the talking. That lasted until they were nearing the ring-highway around London that was the unofficial cordon for the defenses. Juliet spotted a new unit patch, and they touched down by a traffic-control team, Juliet making the introductions as usual.

The Corporal that responded shocked Allison with his accent. "You lasses are the crazy kids from Japan, then?" The accent was pure Irish, if not the one she was used to hearing when her father took them back to Ireland.

She could not stop herself from saying, "You're Irish?"

The Corporal looked at her, and she finally noticed the black-lettered name-patch on his dark urban cammos – McTavish. "Las' time I went home I was, yeah," McTavish replied.

"Your mother'd disagree wi' that, Paulie," one of the Privates muttered, sounding just as Irish as his superior. The other two privates chuckled, and McTavish grinned.

"Least I know my mother, ya stupid mick. Now let's play nice in front of the kids."

Allison groaned and smacked her forehead when the collection of Irish accents clicked. "Irish Guard. God, I never did get why anyone from Ireland would listen to the English."

"Ah, we only do that on payday," McTavish said, then gave her a funny look. "You're American… You one of those loonies likes to play at IRA?"

Allison glared back at him. "I'm no terrorist. I'm a mage, not a Revenant."

"So what's yer interest in Ireland?"

It took a mental twist, after so long, but she dropped into the light accent she picked up from her father and trips to Dublin, Kildare, and Wicklow. "Name's Caeghlin. Father's from Kildare, 'fore he got a job in Utah. We go back every year or so."

"Don't look it," one of the Privates commented, "not wi' tha' skin, though the hair could work."

Allison rolled her eyes, "Take after me mother. What're you lot doin' guardin' the English?"

"They're not," someone new said, "They're upholding Ireland's honor and traditions. When they're not mouthing off wasting time talking up a couple kids."

The troopers stiffened to attention, but stopped short of saluting. "Sergeant Boyle," McTavish said, holding out Juliet's pass, "The lasses are from the Japanese contingent, Sergeant."

Boyle took the pass, considered it a moment, then looked Juliet and Allison over. "You two look a little young for this." His accent was lighter than the others, but still heavier than Allison's. He was a solidly built plug of a man, with black hair just going grey and a lot of squint lines around his eyes.

"You look a li'l old fer it," Allison shot back. "Sure ya can handle it, old man?"

Boyle's eyes narrowed. "Don't get cocky, lass. Seed'll eat you quicker 'en they will me and mine."

Allison smirked at him, baring her teeth. "Seed can't kill what they can't find."

"And either one of us can pound Seed into paste," Juliet added. "Laura may not be allowed to kill them, nothing says we can't."

Boyle snorted. "Bravado. Ignorant pride. What're you doing walking around down here? Go flitter off somewhere and stay out of the way."

Allison lashed out, swiping their passes back from Boyle. "We're scouting our zones. Yer unit command is where, precisely? We have questions for 'em."

Boyle glared at her a moment longer, then rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. "That way," he said, pointing down a side street and rattling off an address. "Two-story building right on the river, stone with red trim. Be quick, they've got real work to do."

The Irish Guards command staff were roughly between Sergeant Boyle and Corporal McTavish, as far as being happy to see them. They were more polite than Boyle, welcoming even, but not as cheerful and relaxed as McTavish. Allison handled the talking, and would admit that she probably did not manage as good a job of it as Juliet could have.

As they were walking out to resume their scouting, Juliet faded back to Japanese while commenting, "So… you'll be taking this sector, then?"

Allison swatted her shoulder, "Don't make fun of me."

"I wasn't making fun of you. But these boys aren't deployed across all of one of our sectors. You'll have the Coldstream Guards as well, and ten or twelve Circle wolfpacks."

Allison shrugged that off. "I can handle all of that. But I want to see if these boys can live up to standard or not."

Juliet chuckled at that. "Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? A teenage girl passing judgment on the combat capability of one of the premier military units in the British Army?"

Allison could not help grinning back at her. "Yeah, well, still have to make sure. They've got a reputation to uphold. Besides, I'm probably related to some of them. Take the sector south of here yourself?"

"I'd figure you'd rather have Laura for that," Juliet said. "More protection for your Irish boys."

Allison shook her head, "No, Megan's going to need all the help she can get."

"Tche, Megan's going to be a hundred foot long mountain of muscles, scales, and vicious. All she's going to need is someone to clean the mess out of her claws."

"She's a big target, though, and obvious. No, Megan's going to need Laura to keep the Guard from ganging up on her while she cleans up the Seed. You and me, though, we'll be down here in the dirt, where the only Guard that'll spot us are the one's we're taking down. So yeah, I'd rather have you south of me than Laura. Come on, let's go see who's down there."

00000

Signum followed Hayate into the city's Emergency Management Center with more than a little trepidation. Between the _Rhode Island_'s strike, their initial response to Potsdam, and the reaction in the day and a half since Hayate's intervention in Potsdam, Signum was not sure the Americans would not try something as payback. The American media had certainly not been shy about blaming the damage to Potsdam, and the wave of Seed that followed, on Hayate, though the government had been circumspect about it.

Since their arrival in New York City an hour before, the Americans had been distinctly distant, and there were far too many Circle mages about for Signum's comfort. Even the agreement from their President to allow Hayate's people to defend New York had been stiff, formal, and distant. It had also been less accommodating than the Chinese agreement, restricting them to aiding the Americans' defensive plans.

Now, walking into the headquarters for the defense, Signum could not shake the feeling that there was a trap about to spring. She did not quite think the Circles would do something that stupid this close to a major battle with Al Hanthis, but the Americans had been equally stupid about Potsdam, and there were always Revenant fanatics to worry about. So her left hand rested on Levantine's scabbard at her belt, holding the sword ready to draw, and she scanned the area carefully, visually and magically.

The crowd of people was a disparate lot. Civilians in varying styles occupied about half the seats, but next to most of them was someone in uniform. The main room was a long shallow arc, the longest wall supporting four massive screens, each of which was currently showing six distinct maps of various locations in New York, each covered in markings Signum could not decipher. Permanent work stations were set in two arcs facing those screens, with another third again their number crammed in wherever they would fit. The floor was covered in a dangerous and bewildering array of cables that was only half-covered by clear mats.

Behind the work stations, separated by windows, were two offices and a conference room. Their guide – an Army Captain who had been formally polite so far – took them directly to the conference room. The woman left them there, but promised 'the General' would arrive momentarily. Hayate took a seat at one end of the room's table, and Signum moved to stand at her shoulder. Vita prowled the room, grumbling to herself while she looked over everything, while Shamal settled slowly into a seat to Hayate's left and Zafira parked himself at the door.

Signum was not entirely certain Shamal should be there. She was taking Cidela's predicament far harder than Signum would have expected, given they had known the girl barely a year and a half. Shamal had apparently bonded to Cidela just as thoroughly as she had to Hayate, when Hayate was a child. If that was true, Shamal's reactions to Al Hanthis, especially if Natalia showed up, would be unpredictable. But Hayate insisted, and Shamal had promised to hold herself together, so there was little Signum could do but watch her comrade's back.

Five minutes later, a small horde of Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine officers slipped into the room, headed by a pair of Generals, an Admiral, a quartet of Colonels, and a handful of junior officers playing flunkies. The two civilians – Police and Fire officers, from the uniforms – were almost lost among the crowd. Introductions were made around, mostly people the JSDF had told them were running the defense of New York. The only one Signum was interested in was General Truman, the Army officer with overall command. He was a tall broad-shouldered man, grey-haired and brown-eyed, with a solidly square face just starting to wrinkle. He reminded her unpleasantly of Admiral Graham.

As introductions were passed around and the various officers began questioning Hayate about the Academy forces' roll in the defense, Signum watched Truman. For his part, he returned that consideration, watching all of them in turn, listening with half a mind. It was not until the conversation turned to an argument over air cover that Truman interjected.

"We _need_ the Apaches," Colonel Berwell insisted, "sure the Hellfires aren't much use, but those wing-mounted Bushmasters the Tenth Mountain cooked up make them the most effective Seed-killers we've got! Look how effective they've been against the stragglers!"

"We understand that," Hayate replied, "however they are going to be extremely vulnerable to the Guard. You have already lost five to Seed ambushes, and the Guard will not have to lure the helicopters to ground level to attack them.

"We do not know how many mages Szash will be able to deploy to New York, but my own forces consist of twenty-nine device mages, possibly thirty. Of those, seven are dedicated to ground defense. When your Apaches are flying low, Yussef and his Myrmidons will cover them, but they will be vulnerable to the Seed. Two more of my mages are solely dedicated to protecting the 30th Precinct and my first-year students. Even without attempting to raise a containment barrier this time, we are still going to be badly outnumbered. One or two tasked with defending your aircraft are one thing, but you are talking about an entire regiment of Apaches, some sixty or seventy helicopters, and you insist they will not be flying in amongst the buildings where the Myrmidons will be. Add to that the reconnaissance and observation helicopters, another twenty or thirty aircraft.

"I am not telling you not to use them, I am simply telling you _we_ cannot protect them. To be honest, I am just as glad the Chinese decided not to bring them to Hong Kong. The airspace over the city is going to be very crowded and very chaotic tomorrow."

"What about four aircraft," General Suarez, the Air Force representative, asked, "slow-flying, most of their time orbiting fixed points, couple hundred feet altitude? Could you protect those?"

Hayate nodded, "If they are close together, one or two device mages could provide some protection."

The Circle leader, Wilborough, offered, "We'll have Circle mages aboard them as well. Not wolfpacks, but they can provide some shielding, warn of incoming mages."

"Four Spookies aren't going to make that much of a difference," Berwell insisted.

"Which does not alter our tactical limits," Signum stated, tired of his refusal to accept Hayate's response.

"_What_ tactical limits? I thought those 'devices' of yours give you limitless power?"

"Your media and the Circles have grossly exaggerated our capabilities for mid-scale combat," Signum replied. "If we wished to be indiscriminate in the destruction we unleash, then yes, we could handle Al Hanthis' forces. Also, individually, you are correct – while some Al Hanthis mages can match and even exceed our power, even with devices, most cannot, and none of the Guard we are facing are us. We," she gestured to include Hayate and the Wolkenritter, "are experienced warriors, with well-honed capabilities and instinctive expertise. The Guard are well trained, quick with their spells, but they lack the mentality and experience to utilize those advantages. Individually, we can take any Guard mage short of Szash herself, perhaps short of her immediate subordinates, without too much difficulty. But that takes time, during which time those we are not engaging will be free to maneuver and attack you at will. It is not intransigence on our part, Colonel, it is normal human limitations."

"We will do what we can," Hayate said, "but we are here to stop Al Hanthis and defend New York, not to protect your helicopters."

"Tell me something," Truman rumbled, voice deep and rough, interrupting Berwell's response. "Are the Guard likely to arrive as they did over Hong Kong? In a group behind another of those impenetrable shields?"

Hayate nodded slowly, "Probably. It is a very secure way to teleport into a battle-zone. If the Bureau had the capability to deploy shield generators such as Al Hanthis uses, such would be a standard tactic."

"All right, assuming that then, given your individual superiority and limited numbers, would it be better to scatter the Guard from the start, or to keep them concentrated?"

"Scatter them," Vita answered. "Together they've got backup, and they're pretty good at that. Yussef's boys'll do it better in a couple years, but the Guard does it well enough now. They run in triads for mutual support. Break those up and they're easy to take down. Scatter them all over the city, their initial damage'll be high, but they'll be easier for us to take down."

Truman nodded slowly, then turned to Suarez. "Rafael, get Apollo airborne, make sure they're armed with those warheads Hughes' people put together. We'll go with your initial plan for them. Rich," He turned to Berwell, "make sure Jimmy's got the ground-station radars up and running."

"Done, sir," Berwell replied instantly.

"The birds are on standby," Suarez said while noting down the order, "they'll be in the air in an hour, on station in three. We can keep them there indefinitely with all the tankers the Pentagon sent us."

"Excuse me," Hayate said, "but what plan?"

Truman cocked an eyebrow at her, then smiled slightly and waved to Suarez. "Rafael?"

"Hughes' ACES people put together a sort of mage-chaff warhead," Suarez said, "apparently from rejected output from whatever process they use to make the ammunition the Black Dogs use. They embed the rejects in an explosive matrix, load that on one of the new-model AMRAAMS, and it'll create a short-lived cloud of debris that plays merry hob with you folks' ability to sense magic. I'm guessing you intend to take down the Guard's shield once they come through. If that shield comes down while they're surrounded by that chaff cloud, and everyone's attacking through it, they'll scatter, won't they?"

Signum grimaced, but nodded. "Yes, but we will not be able to see where they are going, either."

"A little confusion on your side for a disrupted enemy is a worthwhile exchange," Truman replied. "So long as your side is prepared for the confusion. Now that that question's out of the way, let's start working our way down in altitude, shall we? Miss Yagami, your people are going to be high-guard fighting the Guard. Could you spare two people to protect the Spookies? If so, please let Rafael know who. From there, what orders did you give these kids of yours? What can the troops on the ground expect to get from them, and how low do the Apaches have to be to share in your kids' protection?"

"We can spare two of the Volunteers," Hayate said, then turned to glance at Signum.

"Bates and Eskijan," Signum replied, "they both have some experience in combat escort roles."

"As for my kids, we brought the first years to assist with medivac – Didier is already talking with the hospitals in the city and your Army medical personnel. The first-years will provide him a wolf-pack, while two of our least experienced device mages guard them." Berwell started to object, but Hayate held up a hand, "that is not negotiable, General. Neither the first-years nor the device mages in question have the experience to be anywhere in open combat. The only reason I brought them at all was that they gave me their word they will evacuate the instant they are targeted by any sort of attack."

"Understandable, and I doubt two more mages will make a difference if they are as inexperienced as you claim. I thought all your device-users had some experience from Hong Kong, though?"

Hayate shook her head, "Not all of them." She had decided to honor the Twins request that she not announce their status. She had her own reasons for doing so, mostly concern that they would lose their father as well as their mother, but the end result was the same – none of them would mention that the 'inexperienced device mages' were first-years themselves. Not even Maunders' fellow Circle trainees were aware the twins had devices, as they never shared classes with any of the students. Someone might notice here in New York, despite the twins' attempts at disguise, but the secret hurt no one and might help in the long run. "As for the second years, given that I have sent all of Maunders' portion of the Black Dogs to London, I kept Yussef and his Myrmidons for New York. They are scouting the city now, along with the Volunteers, to get an idea of the troop deployments. I would like to have them talk to the various unit commanders, but that is not critical."

Signum settled back slightly, relaxing as the briefing and planning carried on. To her surprise, the Americans actually had some insight and valuable planning to add to their suppositions. To her greater surprise, they mostly listened to what Hayate told them, as well. Berwell's precious Apaches were shifted from directly over the city to north-west of it, to harass the Seed while the creatures approached the city. The Spookies were moved north as well, and the planned use of F-22's and Joint Strike Fighters for high-speed passes was tempered, turning the fighters into a harrying element rather than a strike force. As in Hong Kong, the battle of New York would be decided on the ground by the Army and in the air by the mages.

It was several hours later when Truman called the meeting to a halt and started people on fulfilling their new orders. The officers filed out talking amongst themselves, though a few did offer polite goodbyes. When Truman made no move to leave, though, Hayate stayed, which meant the rest of the Wolkenritter stayed. Truman's aide whispered in his ear a moment, then took herself elsewhere with the crowd, closing the door behind her.

"I have to admit," Truman said as he settled back more comfortably in his chair, "I find you rather surprising, confusing, and, to be honest, more than a little insulting."

Signum tensed at the last comment, but Hayate just asked, "Excuse me?"

"You're what, twenty? I was still at VMI when I was twenty, learning how to pretend to be an officer. Hell, my youngest is a year older than you, and she still doesn't know what she wants to do with her life. Not that her older siblings are much better, but still." He huffed, looking both amused and annoyed, and waved a hand at her, "yet here you sit. You're effectively in command of all Allied forces in World War Three, running your own school, and a retired interstellar law officer. Tche, just goes to show, it's never the kids with the starting advantages that do the best."

Hayate smiled slightly at that, "Ah, that. I am afraid I had some shining examples to attempt to live up to, and I was not disadvantaged. Despite being an orphan, I'm afraid I was quite the privileged child, by most standards. Even before my Knights woke. I recommend against judging anyone by the standards I have set. My experiences were a product of unpleasant necessity as much as anything else. I could either join the Bureau or go to prison, and once in the Bureau, I had to excel to ever have any chance of leaving. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed my time in the Bureau, but I learned early on that it was not what I wanted to do with my life." She giggled a little and waved her hand at the crowd visible in the main chamber, "too much politics."

Truman laughed at that as well, shaking his head. "And now you've gone and landed yourself in several of the worst sorts. My sympathies. But," the humor faded, "you and your people did passably well over Hong Kong, but this is going to be a radically different fight. Atlantis is aware of your capabilities now, and your force is divided. You think they're going to bring the same number of mages here and to London that they brought to Hong Kong, but you have not doubled your own forces, not with Maunders' Black Dogs so far behind on the training curve. So… no politics, no pretty words, no reassuring platitudes… can you stop the Guard?"

"Here? In London? Yes, probably," Hayate replied. "The Circle mages we have been training are not as far behind as you might think. The high skill level the Circles demand is never in doubt, their limitation has always been power and the ability to efficiently utilize that power. The problem is going to be where else they strike."

Zafira continued, "We believe they are going to strike south, seize more of Africa. Al Hanthis' goals appear to be territory and population with which to provide raw materials and supplies for their city. Add to that the fact that the current African nations are less stable than those in Europe, and lack the Europeans' military strength, and a southward move makes the most sense in terms of their demonstrated objectives."

Truman snorted, "What military strength? The Germans and French have the tech, sure, but not the numbers, not against what the Atlanteans have proven are needed."

"They are still better off than most African nations," Zafira said. "We believe they will move south, but Africa is one of the regions the Circles have penetrated the least, and where they have a presence, it is strongly Revenant. Only Japan and Australia have less Circle presence, but Africa has a higher concentration of active mages than anywhere else. Still, those mages we know about are both warned and have coordinated their efforts moderately well. The local governments are on alert as well, and what military forces they have are deploying even now. We cannot be sure of the non-Circle mages, but Al Hanthis' conquest forces will meet far more resistance this time than they did during Hong Kong."

"The problem is if they go elsewhere," Signum said. "They could strike east into Arabia, or north into Europe. Again, we have given what warnings we can and nearby governments are standing to alert, but there are problems there.

"We are fairly certain that Israel, Greece, Spain, and Turkey have all received covert delegations from Al Hanthis, but we don't know what those delegations offered or accomplished. We think more delegations were sent to India and South Africa, possibly to Brazil."

Truman quirked an eyebrow at that. "Has it occurred to you that, except for Israel and Turkey, you have students from those nations?"

Hayate frowned slightly. "Yes, it has. Niranjana's parents are already safely at the school, but Esmeralda's, Mercedes', and Juliet's parents all told us they were warned by their governments to lay low for a while. Juliet's parents took an offer of protection from a local mage, one not associated with the Circles, although Juliet objected to that rather strongly. Esmeralda's and Mercedes' parents both reported no contact with the Al Hantheans, but we are concerned about them nonetheless.

"Unfortunately, given the forces involved, we are basically limited in our options. We can protect New York and London from utter destruction, and allow Al Hanthis to conquer more territory, or we can defend some of the territories from being conquered and allow two cities to be destroyed. We do what we can, and we can defend New York and London from the Guard. Anything else will have to wait until we can strike at Al Hanthis directly, at the city."

"Any idea when that will be?"

Hayate actually smiled. "Oh, yes. Two months, no more. Noriko and the JSDF are already preparing a training area, and American and Chinese forces are being selected to go there to work up. In two months, barring misfortune, we will have a way past Al Hanthis' shield, and bring this war to an end."

00000

Yussef touched down lightly on the hospital roof a few seconds behind Didier. The younger boy was not as steady in flight as Yussef would have preferred, and his landing was more 'drop the last few feet' than a proper touch-down. Still, Didier had only been flying for a few weeks, and he was passable. More importantly, despite any unsteadiness, Didier was proving to be nimble in the air and very quick for his limits. He would never outpace anyone with a real device, not with just the training device Hayate-sensei had issued to all the first-years, but he was quick enough for the moment, and would be quicker with the wolfpack.

Yussef took a moment after landing to scan the skyline, noting weapons emplaced on every roof he could see except this one. Then he asked, "Got it marked, Didier?"

"Yes, well enough," Didier said. "The street-level sign isn't very obvious, but it's got more entrances than the neighboring buildings. I can find it again."

The two of them were scouting New York, learning the lay of the Big Apple from above and marking positions, just as Yussef had done at Hong Kong. The other Myrmidons were doing the same, but they were not touching down. Unlike the girls in London, Yussef was too uncertain of the Americans' attitude and reaction to Potsdam to attempt that just yet. Once Hayate-sensei had talked to the commanders and had a feel for the military's reaction, he would reassess, but for the moment, he and Didier were the only ones touching down. Even then, they only landed at hospitals and triage centers where Didier would be taking the wounded once the battle began.

It had taken some fast talking on the parts of Mercedes, Kaemon and Werner, but Hayate-sensei had agreed to let them try Mercedes' idea of forming a wolf-pack around Didier. Hayate-sensei had put a lot of conditions on it, including their security, the standards all the first-years would have to meet, and Vita's ability to find a secure spot for them in the city, but she had agreed. Didier had met the training requirements, learning to fly from Aria and Lotte, and learning how to hold a wolf-pack from Tai-yu and one of the new Dogs working with Maunders. The twins had agreed to limit their own role with their new devices to standing guard over their classmates, and the others had demonstrated to Tai-yu's satisfaction that they could provide steady support to Didier.

After all of that, though, Hayate-sensei had told Yussef that he would have the final call. With his Myrmidons covering the low-level battle, she felt that he would be in a better position to keep an eye on Didier, and to determine if the skittish boy would be able to handle it. So he had two more things to determine before deciding if Didier would still be in New York when the Seed and the Guard arrived.

Just after they touched down, a trio of people stepped out of the shelter of the helicopter landing pad, a man and two women walking over to them. Yussef pegged one of the women as a Circle mage, and the other two as hospital types. The man was wearing scrubs under a white coat, and the other woman was in a painfully sharp suit. The Circle mage was in jeans and a button-down shirt, with a black beret bearing a unit patch he did not recognize.

"Your show, Didier," Yussef told him. Didier twitched and gave him a frightened look, but Yussef shook his head and waved him forward. "I've handled the other ones, you just do the same thing. Say hello, be polite, let them know what you'll be doing, what you need to know. Don't let them rattle you – you're here to help them, not the other way around."

Didier swallowed, but nodded once and gamely went to meet the approaching people. Yussef was a step behind him, taking up Marcel's usual position behind and to the right. It felt a little odd, watching from this angle, but Yussef figured Didier needed to learn how to handle people, and this was relatively safe. The hospital staff, even a Circle mage, would be polite and helpful to someone offering help with the wounded, especially given how unpredictable ambulances were going to be. With every Life Flight helicopter in five states staging into New York, Newark, Long Island, or Bridgeport, one more would not make that much of a difference, but Didier could go places in the city the helicopters could not, and he would be far less vulnerable on the way.

Didier did not vary from the standard intro and information request, and despite the adults' attempts to get Yussef to take over and offer them more than Didier did, he managed to keep himself out of it. They toured the hospital's small ER and non-critical admittance entrance, and Didier marked where both those were, and was introduced to the nurses charged with organizing each entrance during the battle. They would be the ones he delivered wounded to, and he spent more time with each of them than Yussef would have. Still, twenty minutes later, they were once more on the roof of the hospital.

"Last one," Yussef said, moving to lean on the railing of the walkway around and beneath the helicopter pad. He noted that the Circle mage was still trailing them, then ignored her.

"Yeah," Didier said as he joined Yussef, staring north as if looking for the Seed.

"So… tomorrow, if the Seed keep up their pace."

"I'll be ready."

Yussef considered Didier for a moment, taking in the tense shoulders, the wide eyes, and wondered if that were true. He understood pre-battle nerves well enough from his own brief experiences, though he thought he was getting better at it. His older brother Omar had told him some stories from his teachers and some troops he had met that made more sense to Yussef now than they had before. The one that came to mind, looking at Didier now, was one about a corporal that never wore a helmet in battle, because however brave he was when the bullets flew, before then the man was always vomiting into the nearest container, which was usually his helmet. The question in Yussef's mind was, would Didier be nervous before and effective during the battle, or nervous before and a wreck during?

"Listen, Didier, about tomorrow…"

"I can do it," Didier protested. Hayate had told him that Yussef had the final say on his presence, and whatever his views on violence, Didier had quietly agreed with Mercedes – sitting in the Library and watching from afar as everyone else went to war was too difficult.

Yussef considered him for a moment, and Didier dropped his eyes in embarrassment at interrupting him. "Maybe," Yussef said, "just maybe. The thing is, tomorrow is going to be difficult, Didier, for all of us. I can just about guarantee it's going to be the hardest thing you've ever done."

Didier shook his head, "Not the hardest."

Yussef ignored his comment, turning his gaze over the city again, "You're going to have to be fast, Didier, pay attention to everything going on around you. You're going to be in and out of the combat zone, you're going to be chased by any Guard mage that notices you and every Seed in existence. And you can't fight back. In fact, that is your one and only unbreakable order – you do not fight, Didier."

Didier blinked at him, confused. "Um… I'm not going to. I… I can't fight."

"You're going to be watching men fight and die around you, Didier. You're going to have Guard mages trying their hardest to catch and capture or kill you. Some of those soldiers down there are going to ask you, _beg_ you, to help them against the Seed. And you _can't_. You aren't here for combat, Didier, you're here for medevac. That is your job. That's what you've been working on for the last two weeks. You're going to see me and my Myrmidons fighting for our lives and for your life above you, and thousands of soldiers doing the same below you.

"You're going to be facing immense pressure to join in, Didier. Immense. You'd have to be more than human not to feel the temptation. Not to feel the shame of running from battle, of fleeing while the men behind you bleed and fight. I'll be honest, Didier – I couldn't do it, and I don't think you can do it.

"I can do it," Didier protested.

"Can you? It's human nature to fight, Didier, to defend your friends and allies, to protect those who will in turn protect you. It's human nature to feel shame at fleeing from a battle, especially one that you think you can win. The men on the ground are going to be begging you to help, and cursing you when you don't.

"I repeat, your one unbreakable order is, you do not fight. If I so much as think you're going to join in the battle, I'll have Noriko jerk you and the other first years back to the campus in a heartbeat. You aren't trained for battle, you aren't strong enough for it, you don't have the skills yet. Hell, if I'm being honest, _we_ don't have the skills for it, not really. So, you don't fight, you have to run every time someone so much as threatens you. You'd have to be more than human to pull that off, Didier."

Despite the ostensible direction of his gaze, Yussef watched Didier out of the corner of his eye. Didier's confused look had faded through the speech, replaced by a sort of uncertain mulishness that would have been more familiar on Laura's face when confronted by Signum. But when Yussef finished, Didier just nodded. "I'm not going to fight, Yussef. I won't, ever. I'm just going for the wounded, that's all."

Yussef turned back to him, considering him for a moment longer, then nodded slowly. "Good. Stick to your mission, Didier, and you'll be fine. Vary from it, and you'll be back on campus for the duration. Now that that's out of the way," Yussef shoved off the railing and started for the north face of the building. "Five miles or so north of here is the apex of the American's primary battle line, where the peninsular blocking force and the Hudson shore force meet. It's where the fighting on the ground is going to start getting nasty, and where you're going to be called for first.

"Remember when we scouted positions this morning? Right at the apex, where the blocking force meets the Hudson shore force, is the First Brigade of the First Infantry, the Devil Brigade. Their command staff is expecting you. They've got a volunteer who you are going to go get and bring back here. Fast as you can, Didier. Get there, get him, and get back here. You do it quick enough, do it again on the three other test runs I've got for you, and you're on for tomorrow. You're too slow on even one of them, and you and the other first years go back to Japan. Understood?"

"Understood," Didier replied.

The silver bracelet of Didier's training device glowed momentarily and he lifted off, but Yussef held up a hand. "Keep in mind, Didier… the Myrmidons are out there right now scouting the city." Didier nodded, and before he could ask, Yussef grinned and explained, "They see you, they're going to shoot at you. Those are their orders for today, their training. They need to be able to spot fast-moving targets down among the ground-clutter, both to cover you and to stop any Guard infiltration attempts. You get hit, it's a time penalty, and evading them is going to slow you down. So be careful, and be fast. Go."

Didier paled at the mention of getting shot at, and hesitated a few seconds. Then he visibly steeled himself, and plummeted over the side of the building. Yussef watched him go, and was moderately impressed. Didier was moving fast as he could, but staying very low, lower than Yussef would have been comfortable being in his place. Low and fast was one of the best ways to avoid aerial pursuit, but it was risky and more than a little terrifying.

"You were a little rough on him," the Circle mage commented.

Yussef turned towards her, frowning slightly. "And that is your business because?"

She tried to give him a quelling look, but his mother and Hayate-sensei both did it far better, so he just waited. "We're on the same side here."

"The enemy of my enemy is not my friend," Yussef replied, "simply an enemy with whom I share a common foe. I have no illusions about what the Circles will do once Al Hanthis is dealt with. To be honest, I am rather hoping we can end the war without destroying Al Hanthis – they'll make an excellent counter to you and yours."

The woman looked utterly shocked at that, and Yussef chuckled a little. "What, you think I forgot you people kidnapping my friends and trying to kill my teachers? Trying to kill _me_? My people remember those who attack them, ma'am, and we do not forgive that easily. Al Hanthis is the greater threat at the moment, but the Circles are not far below."

"We're not all Revenants."

Yussef laughed aloud at that one, amused that she thought he cared about their internal differences. "The Revenants are not a threat, they are an annoyance and a foil against the Circles."

"Yussef." He twitched and looked up, to find Signum dropping out of the sky next to him. "You are being undiplomatic, Yussef. The Circles are not currently a danger to us. And I am curious as well – you were rather hard on Didier, while telling him to do what he would do anyhow."

Yussef took a moment to frame his answer, before explaining, "I was making sure he can actually do it. Didier's got the words down, the outlook, but there is a world of difference between being a pacifist at school, and being one in the middle of a war zone. Men have done it before, I think there's a Medal of Honor winner from World War Two that was refused to kill, a medic out in the Pacific somewhere. Saved a lot of lives, died doing it, but never took a life, never carried a weapon. Thing is, it takes a lot of spine not to pick up a weapon when everyone around you is screaming for you to do just that. I think he can do it, but I wanted to make sure, and to give him some extra reinforcement against that pressure. I'm as sure as I can be, without seeing him during the battle. Plus, this way, he has permission, such as it is. That'll help him stay out of things he has no business in tomorrow."

"Still pretty harsh," the Circle mage muttered.

"Harsh is what he's going to go through tomorrow. You, me, Signum-sensei, we get to hit back, we get to stand up and go down fighting. Didier's going to have to rabbit every time trouble finds him, and that is far harder, especially considering his father's disappearance."

The Circle mage frowned, "His father?"

"Akalé," Signum explained, and the woman winced.

Guillaume Akalé's four-day filibuster in the face of Al Hanthis' conquest had ultimately proven futile in its immediate goal. The Ivory Coast had formally surrendered to Al Hanthis on the President's order, after Parliament had been forcibly dissolved. No one knew what had happened to Guillaume, he had vanished out of the Parliament Building when it all came apart, spirited away by his fellow Members and hidden God knew where.

Whatever the formal legal status of the country, most of the populace of the Ivory Coast and the neighboring nations were following Guillaume's example, to various degrees. Violent resistance was being suppressed quickly and thoroughly by the Guard in urban centers, with Seed patrolling the countryside, but passive resistance was growing by the day. Few people were attacking the Guard or the Seed, but significant portions of the population were ignoring and avoiding them, ignoring and avoiding the puppet governments Al Hanthis was establishing.

Through all of that, the Akalé name and Guillaume's example were getting a lot of air-time and a lot of attention all over the world, and Yussef figured the man would be a folk hero, at least, before this was all over. Guillaume's example was resonating, quite powerfully, but the man himself was nowhere to be found. There were barely even rumors of sightings of him, though it was said Al Hanthis was hunting for him quite diligently.

Yussef could not imagine what that was like for Didier, but the boy refused to discuss it. Didier neither insisted his father was alive, nor mourned his passing, he simply refused to talk about it. It did not feel like denial to Yussef, not quite. He could not put his finger on why, but there was something off in how Didier reacted to conversations about his father, including at least one occasion when, watching a news broadcast touching on Guillaume, Yussef caught Didier smiling at the screen slightly. It could simply have been pride that, whatever happened, Didier's father had remained true to their ideals. But even that felt wrong to Yussef.

"Do not concern yourself with Didier's reaction to his father's predicament," Signum continued. "Though you are correct that tomorrow will be difficult for all of us. Are your men prepared, Yussef?"

"Still scouting the city, but they should be solid by sundown."

"Have them continue their scouting tonight," Signum told him. "The Tenth Mountain's Warriors and Falcons have been reporting fewer contacts with the Seed. They are spreading out and going to ground."

Yussef grimaced at that. The Tenth Mountain Division originally deployed from Fort Drum to Newark as part of New York's defenders, then had moved north as part of the effort to retake Potsdam. When the lead elements of the 4th Brigade Combat Team went in following Hayate-sensei's Armageddon strike, they had immediately run into an insane number of active Seed, and even though those Seed were obviously disoriented, the attempt by the 3rd and 4th BCT to retake the town had failed. After that, the entire Tenth Mountain had rapidly deployed north and east of Albany, then filtered south just ahead of the main Seed force, harassing them and trying to whittle down their numbers. They had been moderately successful, though usually suffering high casualty rates for every Seed they killed. The 4th BCT was still around Potsdam, actually, trying to locate the unknown number of Seed that had, instead of following the main pack, spread out from the town seemingly at random.

If the Seed were backing off from their advance, though… "They're delaying," Yussef muttered. "Matching time with the London force?"

"Fate reports the same thing in England," Signum told him. "The Seed crossed the Channel in the face of Royal and French Navy guns, and both countries' aircraft, then went to ground. The British Army is trying to find them and dig them out anyhow, but do not anticipate much success. We think they are planning a night attack, tomorrow evening. It will require moderately close timing, but this far north and at this time of year, both cities can be attacked simultaneously under cover of darkness."

Yussef shuddered at the thought. The Seed had been bad enough in Hong Kong, with the morning sun and a full day to look forward to. Fighting them through a winter night in New York was going to be beyond nightmarish. "That's going to suck," he muttered. "At least the weather's supposed to be clear… ish."

"Not in London," Signum replied, sharing a grim smile with him. "They're already getting rained on, and it's supposed to continue for a few days."

"Lovely," Yussef muttered, looking up as a green light flickered down near street level. He checked his watch, then frowned. "Damn, looks like the kid did it. Right, did you need me for something, Signum-sensei, or were you just checking in?"

"I'd like you to head over to JFK after you finish with Didier," she said. "The Air Force has some planes there, 'Spookies' they call them, that I want your opinion of. A pair of Volunteers will be there talking with the crews, but the Air Force is laughing up their sleeves about something, and I would like to know what before tomorrow night."

Yussef nodded, "I'll had over in… probably two hours. Bring Luke and Marcel with me, they should be good by then. For now, though," he lifted off and waved Didier up to him, "it's time for his second test."

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Notes on the military: The military units cited above are all real, current Royal Army and US forces. I won't guarantee that I got all the unit relationships and equipment precisely correct, since both armies don't exactly publish their Tables of Organization and Equipment, but I will claim enough accuracy for my purposes. The only one I'm really doubtful of is the count of Apaches and Kiowas, as I have been unable to find a reliable report on how many of each an air cavalry squadron or combat aviation brigade is equipped with. For clarification's sake, here's some basic info on the units.

The Royal Guards Division – Actually the Guards Division, this is an administrative formation that coordinates the Foot Guards who are responsible for protection of the Royal Family – the guys in the red coats and furry hats that parade around London playing tourist attraction. They're rather more dangerous than the parading about would lead one to expect. The Guards Division (and the Foot Guard) consist of the Grenadier Guards, Coldstream Guards, the Scots Guards, the Irish Guards, and the Welsh Guards. The three nationally named Guards units are recruited from their respective regions – Scotland, Ireland, and Wales.

First Infantry – the 1st Infantry Division, aka the Big Red One, is the oldest division in the US Army, first activated in May of 1917. It has a reputation as one of the hardest fighting divisions in the US Army. Currently based in Fort Riley, KS.

The Devil Brigade – the First Brigade Combat Team of the First Infantry Division. A 'heavy' brigade, it has four regiments and two battalions. The battalions are, respectively, division command and support formations. The regiments consist of one each Armor, Cavalry, Infantry, and Field Artillery. Like its parent division, it is the oldest brigade in the US Army. Despite the similar name, this unit has no relation to the First Special Service Force, the famous 'Devil's Brigade', save being part of the US Army.

Tenth Mountain – The 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Drum, NY. Experts in mountain and arctic warfare, this is a light infantry division. It's a little lightly armed to be fighting the Seed, but was the closest organized force. The 10th Mountain has four Brigade Combat Teams (each of three to six thousand men), plus a combat aviation brigade (helicopter support) and a logistics brigade.

The Warriors – the 10th Mountain's 1st Brigade Combat Team, consisting of two Infantry battalions, a cavalry regiment, a field artillery regiment, special troops battalion (the Brigade command, basically), and a support battalion. This is the last major ground force between the Seed and the Hudson, deployed to harass and deplete the Seed, not stop them. The 2nd (Commandos), 3rd (Spartans), and 4th (Patriots) are Brigade Combat Teams with basically the same organization.

The Falcons – The 10th Mountain's Combat Aviation Brigade, where the Division's helicopter resources are concentrated, including Apaches, Blackhawks, Chinooks, and Kiowas.

Military Gear mentioned above:

Spookies – the AC-130U Spooky II, the latest iteration of one of my favorite aircraft. It's a big, slow, unwieldy, ugly beast of a transport plane fitted with a WWII anti-aircraft cannon (40mm Bofors), an artillery piece (105mm), and an anti-tank Gatling gun (25mm), all mounted for ground-attack. The only problem with deploying it against Seed is the probability of encountering Guard mages, whom it could not outmaneuver.

Bushmaster – The M242 Bushmaster is the 25mm chain-fed autocannon mounted in the turret of the M2 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle. It fires smaller rounds than the Apache's chin-gun (the M230 30mm chain-gun) at a lower rate of fire, but at higher velocity. It's also small enough (relatively speaking) to make mounting it on an Apache's stub-wings using both hardpoints a possibility. Two months is plenty of time for Army techs to pull Bushmasters out of Bradleys in other parts of the country, ship them to New York state and figure out how to mount them on Apaches, giving the attack helos three weapons for Seed-hunting instead of one.

Firescout – a largish rotary-wing UAV, the Firescout is an Army/Navy design intended for reconnaissance. The Army's interest resulted in arming the craft, normally with missiles but also with the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System – laser guided rockets that, at shorter ranges, will be as effective against Seed as RPGs and Panzerfaust 3s. A Firescout could also theoretically carry a small machine-gun. In New York they will primarily be used for spotting for the Spookies and Apaches.

Kiowa – The standard Army scout helicopter. It's technically unarmed, but carries a lot of sensors and communications gear, so its armament is whoever it can talk to. Most of its sensors are mounted in a big ball on a mast above the main rotor, making it look weird but allowing it to spot enemies without exposing itself. As with the Firescouts, their function will be spotting and observation for Army forces.

Apollo – you'll have to wait and see about that one, since I had too much fun writing the scene.

AMRAAM – Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile. Current range is thirty to forty miles, and the missiles are fairly reliable. Only problem with them is they're big bulky weapons, so most aircraft can't carry very many of them.

Desmond Doss – Yussef's reference to the pacifist Medal of Honor winner is not quite correct, deliberately so. Yussef's military trained, and knows history pretty well, but his memory's not that perfect. The man he was thinking of was Desmond Doss, the first conscientious objector (of three to date) to ever receive the Medal of Honor. Never carried a weapon, saved 75 men (officially, estimates vary – he said 50, his commanding officer said 100, the Army split the difference) in one action on Okinawa by lowering them off a cliff under enemy fire. He also survived the war.

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Author's Side Note: As I mentioned in a review-reply last chapter, I'm making an attempt at NaNoWriMo. Fifty thousand words in thirty days on a totally new story. I've got a rough outline of a completely original work, with detailed outline of the first half or so, but it's still going to take a lot of writing. I can't work on one thing at a time, so I'll still be working on the next chapter for this, and a Side Story I mentioned, but I probably won't be posting again until late December. On the flip side, once I get the NaNoWriMo story done (tentative title – Step Sideways, and it'll take me more than this November), I'll be posting it chapter by chapter on-line, probably at if I can remember my ID.

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Kell Shock: Murders, murderers, what's the difference?:) That's fixed, to be 'murderers'. As for Armageddon seeming unimpressive, there are a couple reasons I did that. For one thing, it is a hideously long range – the only thing in the real world that can match it is a full on ICBM. Compared to that, even long-range sniper Nanoha, in series, was basically a visual-range combatant, and her most powerful attack is a straight-shot. The biggest reason, though, is that Hayate failed in her attempt to cast the spell. It went off, sure, but nowhere near what it should have been, or could have been. You are also right that the casting time is prohibitive. Hayate needed about an hour, though that was also her first attempt and she was complicating the spell by arcing the shot. The best spot to hit Al Hanthis from would probably be high orbit but not directly overhead, altering the line so a straight shot kisses the planet's surface right at Al Hanthis' location, then carries on back into space. 6K Seed on the loose is bad, but part of Seed programming is obedience to the Alphas, and Hayate did not get all of them. Enough Alphas remained (from initial wave and later activations) to get most of the Seed headed in the right direction. As for the Seed headed for Britain, the Guard doesn't bother protecting the Seed for those maneuvers. Travel to target can be accomplished by small groups of Seed, especially in this case, which are quite capable of looking after themselves. Some will be destroyed, sure, but the majority will reach the target. Remember, Seed are fundamentally intended for small unit actions, and at that level they excel. There are Circle mages cooperating with both governments, in varying degrees – remember, the Circles are part of most western governments and militaries, they're just usually a _quiet_ part.

hignum: the details leading up to the combats are proving more difficult than the battles themselves. Most of the research has been making sure I get the units right, and that I get things like river and street names right. Cidela's return is coming, be patient. Natalia is into multiple personality territory now, yes, though I'm not sure her eventual fate will live down to everyone's desires. I think her fate is pretty vicious, but others will probably disagree.

GeshronTyler: Don't forget the Alphas – there may not have been many, but there were enough to keep most of the Seed strike force together. Also, Seed won't 'slaughter large mammals', as such creatures would not be on their threat list. If a bear attacks one, yes the Seed will kill it, but so long as the bear minds its own business, so will the Seed. Humans are another matter, to the Seed, especially mages. The US Army units are about as well equipped, and somewhat better prepared mentally for the Seed (they've been expecting an attack for a month or so, instead of a few days). As referenced above, the 10th Mountain have been equipping Apaches with pairs of Bushmaster cannons, using the three guns for Seed hunting, with (more poor, unfortunate) infantry to flush the Seed out of cover. The problem with cluster bombs (or any bombs, for that matter) is collateral damage – yes, such weapons will probably kill Seed, but it's easier to repair a lot of bullet holes than it is to rebuild a building, a forest, a road… If this was the US Army and US Air Force attacking Seed in, say, the Middle East, then sure such weapons would see wide deployment. But in their own back yard? Where their neighbors and the politicians' constituents live/vote? Not likely. There is a fairly broad stretch of the New York Appalachians that are sparsely populated, but that's a lot of space and you run into the same problem the Europeans face – small groups of hideously dangerous creatures filtering their way through rugged terrain. That makes the Seed hard to find, hard to hit, and hard to kill. 10th Mountain has had two brigades in those mountains for about a week trying to find and pinpoint the Seed for just such strikes. You are correct that all anti-tank weapons will have a great deal of trouble locking onto Seed, which is why the 'primitive' RPG (or Panzerfaust-3) is so effective. That lock-on difficulty is also why Apaches with 3 cannons are proving so popular. I'm afraid the US won't be deploying Spectres to New York, because they're using the newer Spooky II variant. I've long been familiar with the C-130 gunships, and they've been in the plans for the US since I started this. Things aren't done yet, and London and New York will only be high points for individuals, not for either side.

D.K.N.: Hayate's strike on Potsdam won't bite back at her, so much as leave some hard feeling floating around the US (especially with the 10th Mountain). Nanoha and Fate are leading the defense of London, and will play major parts there, though of the two I'll probably focus on Nanoha (she's got someone to 'befriend'). As for the situation with the Bureau, Chrono has a couple more things to do before there's a change there.

Daughter of the Ether: Jun's doesn't actually have a nickname. The format for the entries in my profile is Name – Nickname (if any), Nation, City (if listed), then whatever song or songs I have them matched to in my head, then any affiliations (such as Twilight Paladins, Myrmidons, Black Dogs, etc). Also, Jun's a guy, not a girl:). Natalia's not being taken over, though she might not be willing to counter the Precia personality's efforts, either. You'll have to wait and see what happens to her.

Nijiru: The attack on Potsdam by Al Hanthis was to get the Seed across the Atlantic without getting them nuked again – an uncontrolled release of Seed was never Szash's plan (remember her opinion of the constructs). There'll be a few more scenes from non-mage characters, especially amongst the military forces defending various cities, though I wont' promise where they'll be from just yet.

Templar Prime: The Nanohaverse (minus StrikerS) never struck me as big on summons, the closest to that being familiars like Arf and the Lieze twins. Armageddon is 'simply' a powerful attack spell. Several Alphas did survive, enough to get most of the Seed headed south. The loose ones (roughly a fifth to a third) are going to be persistent problem, especially if Al Hanthis' recall signal fails to retrieve them. I generally dislike time travel as such, mostly because it always seems to either hurt my brain, or use some convenient excuse to bypass half the logic of time travel in the first place. I will say that, while the nature of the Void makes it technically/theoretically possible to travel through time, and communicating across time is possible if difficult, actual 'time travel' as it is commonly understood faces severe practical limitations, so it won't really happen.

NoblesseOblige: Hayate's strike on Potsdam is basically balanced – Al Hanthis pulled back, and won't have the full Seed force they were looking for, but the Tenth Mountain was spared having to face hundreds of Seed backed up by ten or fifteen Guard mages. As for Al Hanthis' plans, they're doing just what they did against Hong Kong – send the Seed by 'conventional' routes, then teleport in just as the Seed attack the target. Minimum exposure for the Guard mages, plenty of warning for the target to get civilians out of the way and concentrate the mages Al Hanthis really wants to take out. Depending on the shield, yes, Al Hanthis can fire out from behind it. The stronger shields can't be fired through, but many of the personal shields are not all-surrounding, or are 'selectively permeable'. The city's primary shield can support 'gun ports' generated by the cannon mounts, similar to the one Hayate entered by when she visited the city right after it came out of the Void. Hayate cannot hover using her usual flight spells, but the energies involved in Armageddon supported her, like floating a piece of steel between several magnets, and yes, that put her under tremendous strain. I won't confirm or deny that Hayate will use the Armageddon spell against Al Hanthis itself, but it is one of the only ways to crack the city's shield. Worse than the consequences of failing, though, are some of the potential consequences of succeeding (collapsing shield generator overloads a power generator and presto – uncontained dimensional instability receiving lots of power all at once, leading to a very unpleasant 'boom'). It was a fine review, and thank you for taking the time to write it.

Haskell: The US failed to retake Potsdam, mostly because there were as many Seed there as soldiers in the 'relief force'. The Seed mostly left the town once the Alphas got them under control, and the Tenth pursued them. The various parts of the US government are unhappy with Hayate, but how much is dependant on which part of the government. It isn't coming into play, particularly, but the military's 'unhappy', while the politicians are 'livid'. It'll play out in the background after New York and London, though. Thanks for the review!


	43. 42 Bad Moon Rising

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-42 – Bad Moon Rising-

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Author's Note: There's a new Side Story as well, 'Can't Go Home Again'. It's actually set during last chapter, so this chapter will, to a minor extent, spoil the Side Story.

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Allina had parked herself on the roof of a non-descript brown two-story building on the north bank of the Thames. Externally, there was nothing to attract attention to the building other than the bewildering array of satellite dishes, which were what had drawn her there in the first place. The building below her was a BBC telecomm hub, heavily linked to television, telephone, and even weather satellites. There were other buildings, other locations, that had higher data-transfer capabilities, in line-rate and total volume, but this utilitarian building provided her a good mix of capability and anonymity.

Watching through the rain as the Guard shield platforms teleported in south of the city, at just shy of three in the morning, she needed a moment to still the shaking in her fingers. It was as much rage as fear, but both emotions were running strong. The last time she had pitted herself against the Guard, they had put her in a coma and the traitor had almost killed 'Jana-chan. Now she was going to do the exact same thing again, to deliberately invite the attack that almost got her last time, and there were not as many friendly faces overhead to help her feel safe about it.

_'Calmly, Allina-chan,'_ 'Jana-chan whispered in the back of her mind, _'we planned for this, remember?'_

"I remember," Allina said, aloud and telepathically, "but I'm still nervous."

_'Do you want to try the alternate plan? Hayate-sensei agreed to let us try either.'_

Allina thought about it for a moment, and almost said yes. The 'alternate plan' – a strictly local effort to confuse the Guard over London – was viable and would probably be even more useful to London than Allina's main plan. But the main plan would give them a chance to get at Al Hanthis itself, though somewhat later than the present.

"No," she decided, "no, we'll go with the main plan. HAL, status."

A screen flickered into being next to her, displaying a list of hosts and connections. "HAL online, uplinked. Saraswati-Primary online, Saraswati-Secondary online, Beowful Brasilia online, BBC-Comm-Hub online. Satellite links stable on all bands, channels clear. Thirty-two thousand seven hundred sixty-eight zombies report ready. All systems on standby, awaiting command from Primary."

She could not help smiling at that, at how eager he sounded. "All right then, HAL, route Beowulf Brasilia, initiate plan Beowulf Hong Kong."

Another screen flicked into being, listing programs and routing information, "Gatecrasher-Midchilda-Beta v0.6HK initialized, broadcasting…"

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Half the world away from London, in a network operations center buried in a boring cube-farm in one of the smaller skyscrapers, Hong Kong's government network specialists had their daily routine rudely interrupted. The center monitored the city's communications traffic, coordinating among the telecom providers to insure uninterrupted data flow, and that traffic abruptly spiked. Television signals corroded, radio channels hashed, trading systems slowed, and networks began to approach overload and failure.

"It's not a denial of service," Li, the young intern Shao was supposed to be training muttered, "the traffic level's high enough, but it's not hitting one location, it's hitting everywhere."

It took ten seconds for Han Shao, the lead administrator on duty, to realize someone was mounting a massive cyber-assault on his city, and another two minutes to realize who. Even then, he could not honestly take credit for the 'discovery', as she was _not_ being _subtle_, not in any way, shape, or form. The traffic was originating all over the world, but one protocol kept appearing over and over again as he studied the firewall traffic from the city government's own network – Gatecrasher.

"Maricopa," he half-snarled. He had helped the girl set up the city-wide camera network for the defense against the Seed, and like every other system administrator that so much as looked at the girl, he had trusted her exactly as far as he could throw her. He had thought he cleaned out every backdoor and false-identity she left behind, but he – and his fellows all over the city – had apparently failed to get them all, as one network after another began repeating the 'Gatecrasher' routines into neighboring systems.

Li asked, "Isn't she supposed to be in New York right now?"

Shao shook his head, "No, she's in London. But she should not have time to do this, not right now. She should not have had time to set up such an attack before hand either, this number of zombies would take months to generate."

"Tche, barbarian probably thought it would be fun," someone else commented.

"No, that is not her way, and this is not her style," Shao objected, thinking quickly now that his initial anger was fading. Maricopa was the sort of criminal Shao trained to fight, yes, but she was not the destructive sort, not the type to foist a denial-of-service on an entire city just for the fun of it. She was doing something, but what…

"Oi, looks like the invaders finally got to London, too," Mao called from the door to the conference room, where they had a pair of televisions set up to watch the coverage.

_London,_ Shao thought, _Maricopa's in London, why would she trigger this now? She can't have the time to play, so it has to be something… something to help her in London? The attack she suffered! She's buffering against a repeat, while she goes after… _"Mao! Check with emergency services, see if their systems are being affected, same with air traffic control and port control. If they're being affected, do whatever you can to clear their systems without halting the overall attack. Everyone else, get on the phones, contact every network security and maintenance officer in the directories, we should still have the lists from the December evacuation. Tell them that they are not to interfere with the current remote access attempts and are to cease and desist all attempts to break the connections. Inform them that the connections are part of allied efforts to repel Atlantis' most recent assault, and any interference with such efforts will result in criminal charges."

"Sh-Shao what are you talking about?"

"Those kids came here to save our city," Shao said, "and the only reason Maricopa would pull something like this now, while she's trying to protect London, is if she needs the networking for something. She's got zombies all over the world accessing protocols she left in Hong Kong's networks, it has to be for something aimed at helping her in London. Helping her against the bastards that attacked our city and set those animals loose on us. Beijing has matched the Empress' promise to aid any who battle Atlantis, and I will not be the one to renege on that promise! Get on the phones, now!"

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As the last of the Guard materialized within their shield, HAL reported the first stage completing. "Fifty-two percent, that's better than I expected, actually," Allina admitted.

_'Will it be enough?'_ 'Jana-chan sounded worried. _'We projected sixty-percent to be the lowest safe.'_

Allina shrugged, "It'll do, sixty's just what I said to sell it to Hayate-sensei. Sixty'd be better, but fifty-two percent's still a lot more buffering and processing power than I really expected. Not very efficient, though, even with the zombies carrying some of the maintenance load."

_'We turned half of a major city into an enormous distributed processing network, Allina. It's not designed for that, so of course it's not going to be efficient. Are you sure fifty-two percent is enough, though? I don't want something like Halley to happen again, and too much of the structure is dedicated to self-maintenance, it will not be available to distract and absorb Al Hanthis' attempts to counter-attack you.'_

"Eh, the more HALs there are running around, the more fun life'll be, right?"

_'No, they will not, especially not if it involves putting you in a coma again.'_

"I wasn't in a coma," Allina protested, then shook it off, "but don't worry, this'll do. We'll just have to be real slick this time, and real fast. You ready?"

'Jana-chan hesitated a few seconds, just long enough for Allina to think she was going to back out, then sighed and said, _'I am ready… to pull the plug, as well as to proceed. Be safe, Allina-chan.'_

"That's your job tonight, 'Jana-chan," Allina replied. Then she reached mentally, _'Aria-sensei? 'Jana-chan and I are ready. Can you pick us a target, please?'_

_'Wait until the shield is down,'_ Aria replied, _'they'll be vulnerable then, harder to teleport out if the Circles' suppression teams do their jobs right. But once the shield is down…'_ A mental image reached her, an older man, salt-and-pepper hair over a slightly wrinkled face. Data came with the image – magic strength, signature, and location coordinates. _'Go for him once the shield goes down. The insignia indicate a Master Adept and a Major, so he should have all the access you'll need, but he'll be well defended. Watch your eyes, the British are launching their distraction.'_

While the infantry dug in south of the Thames, the British Army's support forces had dug in north of the Thames. Tanks were emplaced on both sides of the river, generally as impromptu bunkers, but the artillery, rockets, and surface-to-air weapons normally deployed close or on the lines were all north of the river. Now, despite a government-mandated blackout, London lit up, to tracers, rocket trails, and gunfire. Artillery, vehicle-mounted and man-portable SAMs, autocannons, and machine-guns opened fire in a rumbling roar, smashing into the Guard's shield in impotent fury.

The thunder and fury was impressive, but it was the smoke-cloud that was crucial. Behind its cover, the London mage force spread out and advanced, passing above the barrage behind Circle spells designed to disrupt magical sensors. The Guard was thoroughly obscured by the smoke and debris of the bombardment when Fate and Nanoha, spaced equidistant from each other to the east and west, smashed the shield between them.

The instant the shield was down, Allina and HAL struck. They tracked their target's signature easily as he tried to go up and north, and forced open a connection. "Diving," Allina said, "watch my back, 'Jana-chan."

_'Redirects and spoofs on-line. I've got you.' _

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Several thousand miles to the west, in the B-1R Lancer designated Apollo One, Colonel Grant Greer flexed his hands briefly, before taking back the stick and throttle from his co-pilot. He was just getting settled in when Specialist Bower came over the intercom, "Receiving targeting feed from Hi-Com, sir."

Greer tensed slightly at that, and Major Perrin in the copilot's seat sighed. "Here we go," the Major commented. Hi-Com was the AWAC bird controlling the air battle over New York, and responsible for feeding Greer and his fellows with the targets for the opening volley of the defense.

"'Bout damn time," Greer shot back.

"Vanessa's gonna be pissed," Perrin grinned at him. Vanessa Woznicki was the crew commander for one of the two relief crews crammed in aboard, and had been the most vocal about getting a shot at the Guard.

"Not my fault the Atlanteans picked my shift to attack. If she wanted to start things off, she should have won the draw for the evening shift." While talking, Greer shifted the stick slightly, maneuvering into a descending eastward turn. "Bower, inform Hi-Com that we are maneuvering towards IP, then verify the rest of the flight is doing the same."

Bower was silent for a minute, then reported, "I have acknowledgment of receipt and turn-in-to-IP from all three aircraft, sir. Thirty seconds to IP, thirty five for Apollo Four."

"Status on the payload?"

"Targeting data accepted by all birds aboard. Apollo Three and Four are flagging bad racks, one each."

Apollo Three and Four were two new birds, old airframes just converted to the R configuration, where as One and Two were both the original test-beds for the variant. Greer was mildly surprised the two new birds only had one bad rack apiece. "Order them to secure the bad racks and launch the rest of their birds on time," Greer told him. "Passing IP… now. Bower, verify target with Hi-Com."

"Targeting verified and confirmed. Guard shield over Upper Bay. Christ, these guys came in just above Lady Liberty, the arrogant bastards. Hi-Com reports target is live, wishes us good luck, and we are weapons free."

"Weapons free acknowledged," Greer said, "go ahead, Bower, you set up the programming."

"Why thank you, sir, and can I just say, you're not nearly as bad as the Major says you are." A moment later Bower came over the squadron frequency, "Apollo flight, Apollo flight, launch all birds. I say again, launch, launch, launch."

Forty miles out from New York City, from race-track orbits at each cardinal point, four B-1R Lancers – two of them with less than a month in the designation – had turned as one towards the city. Each descended through the turns, from ten-thousand feet to eight-thousand, to give the AWAC and other observation aircraft over the city some extra clearance. As their course came to bear on the city, lights flashed green, codes input, and four triggers depressed. Well aft and below the crews, each B-1 had the bomb bays locked closed, and four external ordnance racks fitted. Each rack held six long heavy missiles painted white, and all four B-1s ripple-fired their entire payloads in pairs. In just over thirty seconds, eighty-four next-generation AMRAAM missiles roared into the night sky, each fitted with a month-old warhead design. Each one was locked by GPS and radar on the Guard shield, and the first wave was in the air just as the first Guard mage teleported in behind that shield.

Greer watched the missiles from his aircraft burn into the distance, but was already busy with egress. He brought up the squadron frequency, "Apollo flight, this is One. Payload on the way, execute bug-out. Our job's done, kids, let's go get some beer back at the barn. Last crew home buys the first round."

Payloads expended, two aircraft continued their turns right, Apollo Four reversed the turn, while Apollo Three simply climbed. As soon as their course came due west, all four pilots pushed the throttles to the stops and climbed for altitude. It was a rare opportunity, pushing the old aircraft up towards their maximum speed. Personally, Greer had to put some effort into not diving for the deck instead, as old pre-mage training demanded, but their briefing had been quite specific. After Potsdam, in a reversion to pre-rocket-age bomber tactics, altitude meant life against Al Hanthis, and he brought the nose up enough to trigger the stall warnings.

Perrin chuckled at him, then asked, "Burners?"

Greer grinned, but shook his head, "No need to go wasting the taxpayers' fuel. But let me think about it for a minute."

From the cramped cabin in the back where the relief crews had been sleeping came a rather disgruntled, "What the hell's going on, sir?"

Greer's grin widened slightly. "Perrin, didn't I tell you to wake everyone else up?"

"Not that I recall, sir. I'll be sure to reprimand myself for not thinking of it when we file our reports."

"Oh, don't worry about it, my mistake." Greer chuckled, glancing back to see Woznicki hanging onto the hatch against the aircraft's steep climb. "So, Major, since the relief crew's awake, maybe it's time we trade off. Once we're clear of the zone, of course."

"Certainly, sir, that sounds like an excellent idea. I'm feeling a little tired from the rigors of combat this evening."

"Respectfully sir," Woznicki said, "jump off a cliff. Everything's over?"

"Everything but the fireworks," Greer replied, sobering, "at least for us." The strike was a vindication of the Apollo project, which he was rather happy about. But he was also perfectly well aware that it was essentially a side-show, a distraction, and the real battle was going to be much less neat and pretty.

00000

Despite future reports, Apollo did not fire the first shot in defense of New York City. Nor did it go to the gunners on the Air Force Spookie IIs over the river, though the gunships opened fire several minutes before Apollo's strike. The honor of first shot went to a US Navy Ensign a hundred miles south aboard the _USS Harry Truman_, working one of the sonar coordination tables in the carrier's Combat Information Center.

Yussef was airborne over the Hudson when the Seed reached the shore shortly before midnight and the Americans kicked off. The drone of the sixteen propeller engines overhead of Yussef's position was uncomfortably loud. The four Spookie IIs were flying very low, even for the traditionally low-flying AC-130s, staying on the deck to avoid something the Army called Centurion, and Yussef and his boys had been warned not to go above seven hundred feet altitude for the same reason, though the officers telling them that only chuckled darkly at questions.

New York City itself was blacked out, every light in the city shut off. Only the lights of various emergency vehicles and the hospitals were on, leaving the city feeling unnatural and strange. Even Newark and the other municipalities across the Hudson were dark and evacuated. Some had suggested putting units there, and further south where the Upper and Lower Bays met, the New Jersey National Guard had deployed in force. But they were light on anti-armor rounds, light on equipment, and the Hudson offered too good a firing-line to give up. So the western shore of the Hudson was abandoned, by all but coyotes and the Seed.

In the days prior to the battle, there had been some concern that the Seed would cross the Hudson further north, in more rugged terrain where it would be harder to engage them from the air. There were even some concerns that they would attempt to swim down the Hudson instead of crossing it at the city. In response to the first, the Army's line turned east, closing off the whole peninsula just north of the city limits. The second fear turned out to be truest, as some of the Seed did just that, pacing their brethren down the river.

Thus the first casualties of New York were inflicted not by aircraft, but by sea mines. Placed by the Navy down the entire length of the Hudson over the preceding two days, each was equipped with a hydrophone and automatic detonator, keyed to the faint biological sounds of Seed in the water, and also equipped with command detonation. Sonar sensors had been scattered through the whole river at the same time as the mines, and the whole assemblage was controlled from the aircraft carrier _Harry S. Truman_, at sea south-east of Long Island.

As blast-columns erupted out of the river, the tactical radio attached to the shoulder of Yussef's armor crackled briefly, then announced, "Clear west bank, Spookies in five, four, three, two…"

Shortly after 'one', Yussef flinched as four Bofors and four chain-guns opened fire just a hundred or so feet over his head. The four gunships were flying northward in line, and as the Seed reached the bank, all four opened fire. The initial pass was a terrible sight to behold, four stuttering columns of light marching up the river, explosions and debris. Despite the black-out on both banks, in the explosions and tracer-glare, Yussef could see Seed being hit, see them getting thrown about, and, in fewer cases than he expected, see them still moving afterwards.

_'Guard arriving,'_ Marcel warned everyone, _'Apollo strike is inbound.'_

_'Apaches are pulling back,'_ Luke added, _'they'll be overhead in a minute, so watch the rotors.'_

_'You know they made those an official variant,'_ Ichigo added, _'The AH-64G. The Army's talking about keeping them around for hunting insurgents instead of tanks.'_

_'Interesting but not relevant,'_ Yussef said, _'Keep an eye out for signal flares and for inbound Guard.' _

_'Yussef,'_ Signum's voice surprised him, none of the Wolkenritter were supposed to be contacting him unless things went wrong. _'Natalia is here, with Szash. Warn the Myrmidons.'_

That made Yussef pause, then he shook his head, _'All right. Permission to contact Laura to swap out?'_

_'Swap out?'_

_'We planned for this, on the off chance the Russian showed up.'_ It had been more like Yussef planned for it when Laura asked him to let her know if Natalia showed up. But he _had_ planned for it, and made sure Laura was aware of the plans.

Signum asked, _'You can cover your area without whoever you send to replace her?'_

_'As well as we can right now, once Laura has the Russian in hand,'_ Yussef said. _'We're spread so thin down here that missing two of my Myrmidons won't make a difference. Missing Laura will make a difference in London, though.'_

_'All right then, go ahead. Watch overhead, Apollo's missiles are here.'_

Yussef glanced up, seeing a truly impressive volley of missiles streak overhead. He shook his head at the display, wondering what they were going to do to a carefully designed multi-generator shield that had no-doubt been recalibrated and reinforced since Postdam. But he made no comment, instead telepathically reaching London. _'Laura, the Russian is here in New York, with General Szash.'_

There was a momentary pause, then, _'Well, crap, Gun-Bunny-sensei's going to be disappointed then, isn't she? She was looking forward to a rematch with General Bloodthirsty. Gimme a sec to see if she'll let me switch.'_ She was silent long enough for Yussef to see the after-effects of the Apollo strike. There was something strange in the explosion, something that made the whole area around the Guard's shield look oddly fuzzy and out of focus, but he ignored that as Zulfiquar painted signatures flitting out through the cloud – the Guard separating in trios, spreading out to attack the city.

Laura's mental voice jerked him back to reality, _'On my way, Yu-chan, send your boys. They've got the south-west quadrant, with Megs backing them up.'_

Yussef already knew that, as did Luke and Noah, but he made no comment. Better to be reminded and there was always the chance of a last-minute alteration, especially given Megan's parents' objections. Yussef still had yet to hear how that had been resolved, if it had. Instead of sniping at Laura, he sent a more general telepathic signal to all his Myrmidons, _'Luke, Noah, the Russian is here. Laura's inbound. Get to London, as planned. Everyone else…'_

_'Problem,'_ Marcel interrupted, _'Some of the Seed are headed south into Newark. They're not all crossing the river, and some of the Guard are moving to cover them.'_

_'Shit,'_ Yussef muttered. _'Okay, Luke, Noah, get to London. Marcel, you're with me across the river. Everyone else, stick to the plan, and call for help if you need it.'_

00000

Juliet rolled her eyes when Laura told them she was leaving, a notice accompanied by a typically garbled combination of warnings, advice, and anticipation about the battle. Despite her exasperation with Laura, though, part of Juliet really wanted to be in New York herself, now. She did not want to go after the Russian herself, she had promised not to, but she did want to watch. It would no doubt take Laura mere minutes to pound the Russian into paste, most of it spent just finding the coward, but would still be a pleasure to watch.

Instead of following, though, she hefted the canvas duffle loaded with rebar spears, and jumped off the roof she was on. She was not the least bit interested in going up high, there was far too much anti-air fire and the men on those guns did not have the best range or visual conditions for target recognition, in her opinion. The streets at night in the rain would not be much better, not with all the infantry dug in throughout the city, but at least at low-level she could only be getting shot at by a couple guns and rockets, instead of a division's worth. She was not quite willing to trust her teachers' assurances that Glaive's automatics would protect her from small-arms and light warheads.

A basic scan of the area, the first area scan Lotte-sensei had taught them last year, had proven to be the best way to locate Seed, with one modification to make it more stable. Wherever the scan returned nothing, there was probably a Seed. South of her there was no response from the spell, and there were pockets east and west of her that were worryingly far forward.

There were no Seed in sight, though, and that bothered her. So she dropped down to the sandbag redoubt blocking the north-bound street, touching down behind the squad of soldiers there. One flinched away from her, but the rest ignored her, until she stepped between two of them to rest a hand on the sandbags. Plain English was getting easier after three days in London, "See the critters yet?"

The man leaning on the sandbag glanced at her briefly, then returned to his launcher's sight muttering, "Not yet. Want to go find 'em for us?" The tube launcher – some variant of the old American LAWS, Juliet thought – looked ridiculous to her, considering how tough the Seed were, but there were a frightening number of the things. The squad had a pair of crates of the things, in addition to each man carrying two or three.

Juliet cocked an eyebrow at the man's challenge, then grinned. "They're close, just down the street a ways. I've got a better idea than sticking my neck out, though. Glaive, Active Ping." The pulse of red light that swept out from her position in a sphere was visually spectacular, but not all that dangerous. Juliet was vaguely aware of several Guard triads momentarily retreating from the pulse, before her attention was riveted on the nearest vanished section of the sphere. "There," she said, pointing out the building half a block away as she fished out a piece of rebar.

The whole squad shifted, rockets coming to bear on the building, and Juliet hissed at them, "Eyes out, you idiots. Pack hunters, remember? This one's coming closer, a scout, testing our perimeter, looking for easy prey. Buildings around us?"

"Open," the man next to her muttered, "too many buildings to seal them all. We're supposed to pull back when they start getting into the last buildings across the way."

"I'll cover your retreat when that happens," Juliet told them, "but right now, let's see if I can't sucker one or two into your line of fire. Stay frosty, and mark your targets. Any of you shoot me, I'm going to be _very_ unhappy with you."

Juliet lifted up into the air and floated down the street a ways, but drifting to the far side from where the Seed was. _Going to have to be fast,_ she reminded herself, _Seed like ambushes._

A glint of light was her only warning before the buster spell crashed down, not nearly enough time to react. Glaive's automatics engaged, but the attack still slammed Juliet into the street. A moment later she heard shattering glass and the roar of rocket engines, as two more busters slammed into Glaive's automatic shield. Juliet rolled to her right, away from the incoming Seed, and channeled energy into the ironmongery on her back, "Hedgehog!"

Glaive interpreted her will and the power she was shaping, and the rebar spears, each four feet long and sharpened on both ends, wrenched into V-shapes, sprouting from her back like spines and shredding the duffle bag. The Seed was just lunging at her when she completed the spell, "Claymore!"

The bent rebar sheared magically at the apex, and launched explosively, recoil bleeding through the spell to slam her into the street again. Juliet flinched at the hard/soft sound of rebar hitting the Seed, the heavier sound of it hitting the nearby buildings, and the shattering of more glass, but the desperation maneuver worked. The Seed was staggered by the impacts, and the pulse of power distracted the Guard mage attacking her long enough for her to re-engage her flight spell and rocket away, arcing up into the air.

The Guard mages that had attacked her were easy enough to spot, a trio of younger men in their spiffy red and black uniforms. A pair of Maunders' Dogs were engaging them now, low-powered spells coming fast and furious. Juliet was partly impressed by that – the Dogs were much faster with their spells than the Guard, and while the Guard were throwing more powerful busters, the Dogs were holding their own.

Unfortunately, that meant they were doing well enough for one of them to shout at her, "Remember your job, girl! The Seed are the Army's responsibility, not yours!"

Juliet snarled at him, then decided to show him what a device mage was really capable of. "Glaive, Triphammer." She felt the shiver of excitement, and the world took on a red tinge, as her hands and feet began glowing. She flipped Glaive up and over her shoulder, feeling it adhere to her armor, "Vivace." The world slowed delightfully, and Juliet grinned in anticipation, lunging forward.

The Guard saw her coming, naturally, but were fully occupied. She charged the triad that had attacked her, heedless of the Dogs' fire, and rammed her left fist into the nearest Guard's shield. The Triphammer magic exploded, releasing a charge equivalent to Testarossa's Plasma Smasher, and Juliet swept through the dispelling energies with her right hand.

The Guard she attacked was quick, twisting around her swing and trying to back up, but Vivace gave Juliet all the speed she needed, let her move almost as fast as Laura. She rolled with the missed strike and, even as the Guard tried to fall back, spun into a reverse kick that nailed the man in the gut, Triphammer exploding again. The detonation spun her away from her target, but slammed him into the building the Seed had been skulking through.

That thought alone kept Juliet from pursuing him, since down in the rubble she would be easy prey for a Seed ambush. Instead, she launched herself at the next member of the triad. The woman was smart, though, diving for street level. The soldiers' rockets would not be able to penetrate her shields, but the Seed would help cover her against Juliet. Dropping low reduced her maneuvering options, though, and she was bracketed by buster spells from the Black Dogs.

That left the last member of the triad for Juliet, but he was already retreating, backing away from her while trying to cover his two comrades with buster spells. Juliet let him go, widening the range, then teleported right next to him. He was a split-second slow in getting around, and her second Triphammer fist exploded right behind his head. His last-ditch shields, oddly similar to Noriko's Cascade discs, absorbed most of it, but he still went tumbling to the ground, unconscious. He teleported out before he hit, but Juliet thought he was done. At the least, he would be seeing double for a while.

A buster smashing into her armor got her attention, and she found her first target floating low, just above street level outside the building she had slammed him into. He seemed to be daring her to come after him, staring up at her and smirking slightly. She matched his smirk. "Idiot thinks I'm afraid of the Seed, I bet. I am, I'll admit," she grinned widely, "but I'm thinking I'm faster than the critters." She charged down to meet him.

00000

Laura popped into New York airspace with barely a ripple, and immediately had to twist clear of an incoming Guard mage. She writhed around his surprised reaction strike, then hit him full in the face with a Positron Buster. That took long enough to generate that he had a shield up, but he underestimated its power and was still staggering from the blast when she crashed through it. She planted a knee in his gut, which his last-ditch shields mostly absorbed, then elbowed him once in the back of the head as he folded around her knee.

"Heisenberg's Rule," she muttered, wrapping the binding around him before he could recover, and used the moment to look around.

Vita-sensei was closest, frowning at her slightly, and the rest of the Wolkenritter and Volunteers were doing a number on the Guard. There was a lot of missile and gun-fire in the city's northern reaches, and what looked like lasers firing from below her current altitude, but no threats immediately obvious.

"That was my target," Vita complained as she drifted over.

Laura shrugged, "Sorry, Vita-sensei, but you gave him to me all gift-wrapped and stuff, so I couldn't resist." She held up an offering hand, "you want me to throw him back? He is kinda scrawny."

Vita rolled her eyes, "Just give him here, I'll teleport him to the holding cells Hughes arranged. The Russian's off that way, towards the center. She's sticking close to Szash, so be careful. Hayate-sama's tangling with the General right now, and she's probably going to cut loose soon."

Laura looked over, and sure enough Hayate-sensei was glowing like the sun, Reinforce and Zafira following at her heels like well-trained puppies. It took her a bit longer to locate Natalia through the mess, but her target was definitely there, a triad backing up the General. "I'm on it. I'll trounce her then drop low to cover the Army, 'kay?"

"Yeah, yeah," Vita grumbled, "Just don't go stealing my targets anymore!"

Laura grinned and waved at that, taking off for Natalia. She wrapped herself in Cloak of Shades, as best she could, and slipped through the fighting without giving into the temptation to join in. Yussef's boys could handle the pressure for now, but she had to take care of Natalia quickly.

Laura was not nearly as good with the Cloak as Allison, though, especially not under combat conditions like this, and Natalia's escort saw her coming. She spiraled around the buster he sent in her direction, bombarding him in turn with a string of Zippers. Natalia noticed her then, but Laura stayed focused on her immediate target, the intervening Guard mage, merely noting Natalia's move to stick closer to Szash for future consideration.

Then the man in front of her detonated in a blue-white explosion. He dropped out of the cloud, apparently unconscious, then flickered out in a teleport. Laura waved to Reinforce briefly, then charged after Natalia. The Russian tried to reach Szash again, but with Reinforce and Zafira keeping Szash's other two compatriots busy, the General was twisting and turning through the air to avoid Hayate-sensei's collection of free-floating swords. When Natalia tried to maneuver around Szash, Laura took a swipe at the General herself on the way by. When Natalia tried to dive for another triad, Wormhole popped Laura out among them, and they scattered in surprise leaving Natalia nowhere to run.

Natalia was visibly breathing hard when she finally gave up trying to run, floating a thousand feet over the Statue of Liberty. Laura, having no difficulty with her breathing, floated up to Natalia's level, close enough to talk. She grinned at the fact that the entire pursuit left her feeling energized, where it was obvious Natalia was not handling it as well. "Hey, Talia," she said, "been a while."

Natalia gave her a confused, doubtful look, which made Laura giggle. "Not long enough," the Russian said eventually.

"You gonna come quietly?"

Natalia laughed slightly at that. "No one goes quietly to their own execution. I'm not going quietly, and I'm not going with you at all. My brother is in Al Hanthis, awake and waiting for me."

Laura quirked an eyebrow at that. "Really? Good for you. Noriko's sisters… aren't."

Natalia flinched. "I had nothing to do with that, Laura, I swear. They had information on us from somewhere else, before Hong Kong. How do you think Lord Protector Yosho knew how to approach me?"

Laura shrugged, "Doesn't really matter. That's not what you're going on trial for."

"I'm not going on trial."

Laura drew herself up and, with some difficulty remembering the wording Noriko had insisted on, said, "Natalia Morisovitch, by the authority vested in me as an extension of the Imperial Throne of Japan, I hereby place you under arrest for treason, attempted murder, and as an accomplice after the fact in the use of a biological weapon, all directly due to your actions during the defense of the city of Hong Kong by Allied forces. Surrender, seal your device, let go your magic, and you will be given a fair trial."

Natalia flinched and turned away slightly, as if the recitation was causing her physical pain. But as Laura finished, her face smoothed, her stance shifted, and her grip on Koschei tightened. "No," even her voice sounded different, just slightly. "We have come too far to fail now, have too much left to do. We have learned much these past months, Sims, learned enough to stand against you."

Laura smiled at that. "Really? I hope so, for your sake." Hicho Zwei formed in her hand, glowing white. "I've been pretty busy these past couple months myself, even with watching over Riko-chan," the cartridge in her left shoulder discharged, and she grinned as she whirled Hicho about. "Let's see how far we've come."

00000

_ "We Paladins are, by nature, overly theatrical and melodramatic. Partly it's the personalities we look for in candidates, but it also serves a practical purpose. A lot of would-be enemies are so intimidated by our reputation, that they will surrender when a Paladin shows up rather than fight one of us. Hell, people have surrendered to the rumor of one of us showing up. Being theatrical, especially in publicly humiliating a defeated opponent, helps encourage that sort of behavior, which helps us keep the First and Second Oaths more easily. So we each have our nicknames, our personal catch-phrases and threats that we indulge in at the drop of a hat. Also, we find our fun where we can, and it's all sorts of fun to indulge in that sort of theatrics._

_ "We do share two of those phrases in common, though. The one everyone else knows is 'ready to go', or its caveat, 'ready to go and then some'. It means just what it says. The caveat – the version everyone who works with us dreads hearing – means we're ready and we're tired of waiting, so we're going to kick off right then and there. _

_ "The second one, though… if you ever hear a Paladin say 'let's see how far we've come'… run. Drop whatever you're doing, just grab any wounded or civilians in the area and run. If you're the bloody idiot who convinced us to say it, put your head between your knees and kiss your butt good-bye. It means we think you're good enough to take our very best, and we're going to give it to you. It means the power limiters, tactical limitations, and personal restrictions we habitually operate under – for the challenge – just got tossed out the window, and the only thing limiting our actions and power are the Three Oaths._

_ "It started out as a simple challenge Laura liked to issue, a 'you show me your best and I'll show you my best' sort of thing. These days, though, it is your last and final warning, and you've got three to five seconds, depending on the Paladin, to surrender. Laura and the Creepy Twin take a little longer, since they typically go in with more convoluted restrictions than the rest of us._

_ "Thing is, there are maybe two hundred people in known space that can stand against one of us at full hue and cry. The Wolkenritter and the other senseis at the Academy. Some of the Deva mages. A few of the Bureau's S-rank Enforcers, especially Harlaown's Knights. One or two of the independents. It's not a matter of arrogance, so quit making that face at me. We train, continuously, every day, to be the absolute best in mage combat. You have to have the potential for A-rank strength, minimum, before we'll even consider giving you a chance at the Year of Hell to earn an invitation to join. Mage combat is what we do, and we do it better than almost everyone._

_ "I've seen other Paladins cut loose, especially Laura and Allison. It's one of the most awe-inspiring and terrifying things I've ever witnessed, and I say that having had a front-row seat for Hayate-sensei's Armageddon spell, and the Dies Irae assault and the Goddess' awakening. So follow my advice, and if you ever hear one of us say 'let's see how far we've come', just run. You'll live a happier and more peaceful life._

_ "Thank God there are only nine of us."_

– Juliet Van Saar, call-sign Stormtrooper, Twilight Paladin

Interview for Discovery's Praetorian Guard: History of the Twilight Paladins

Broadcast date January 31, 23 AF

00000

Author's Notes: Why yes, I am still alive. Sorry for the long delay, NaNoWriMo proved more and less difficult than I expected. Less difficult in that I hit 50K words with a day to spare, and would have done better if not for pesky things like Thanksgiving travel and RPG nights. It proved more difficult in that I had little time to work on anything other than NaNoWriMo, and once November was over I basically lost all energy to write for about a week. I got parts of this chapter written during November, but mostly just planned out which scenes this chapter would be.

As for the NaNoWriMo story itself… I am apparently stuck on 'epic', as the final story from the outline I put together over the summer and fall, based on what I got done in November, will actually be something like 200K to 300K words. For comparison, Endless Waltz here hit 300K words in Chapter 32 (Noriko's speech to Japan after the Blood Penance), though that includes these notes & review replies, so it was probably more like Chapter 33. The thing is, the 'book one' part that starts it all off is going to end up somewhere around 70K, so it's only two-thirds done, and in _dire_ need of editing.

As a consolation prize for the delay, there's a new Side Story up, as well, that covers the situation with Megan's parents that Yussef wondered about above.

Spells

Triphammer – this is Juliet's 'exploding fist' spell refined and amplified by way of her device. It holds a moderately powerful charge around each hand and foot that, upon impact with a target, detonates. Like Laura, Juliet prefers to get up close and personal, to mix it up, but she lacks Laura's speed and technique, and so compensates with raw hitting power.

Vivace – this spell is similar in intent to Fate's Sonic Form, accelerating Juliet's speed and maneuverability up to the top end of human. Like Triphammer, it is intended to allow her to compete with Laura in hand-to-hand, and the acceleration is minimal for long-term distance travel.

00000

Lady Sekhmet Ka: Hope you did well on NaNoWriMo, as I mentioned above, it was rather all-consuming for me. UK law does limit firearm possession, yes, but the UK is also a nation of hunters – a shotgun on the mantle is nearly as British as tea, in some views. Nanoha won't be fighting Szash in this battle, that falls to Hayate, but I've got something planned for Nanoha. That is for next chapter, though, possibly bleeding over into the chapter after that.

Kell Shock: Fixed both errors, and a couple more I found digging through (typos all, the bane of my existence). Thanks! I've known since I started this how Hayate was going to get past Al Hanthis' shield, but all I will say now is that everything that will be used has already showed up in the Deva Series somewhere. The side-effects from Megan's dragon form are more lingering aspects of the form – getting back to it is the easiest shape-shift she can do, now, which is part of the problem for her, mentally. So far, the draconic characteristics she retained are permanent, in all her forms, though that may change, as she, Lotte, & Yuuno get a handle one what precisely happened to her – it was not just the 'unprepared form', but also the Seed's nullification effect, Maunders' EMP spell, and the emergency teleport that capped it all off.

GeshronTyler: Last chapter was groundwork, every battle needs preparation, and surprises should be in tactics and outcomes, not equipment used. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. The two-month delay is a bit much, but not all that extreme – it's been two months in story since Hong Kong, after all. Much can happen, yes, but that extends in both directions. As for how the Emperor comes to rule the whole world, more of the groundwork on that will be in the next couple of chapters.

Daughter of ether: I'm afraid the NaNoWriMo project's going to be a while longer – two-thirds to three-quarters of 'book one' is done, but it's going to be a while for the rest to follow. Glad you're still reading this, though, thanks!

Mooniecat: Thanks for the link, I found a full ToE listed on there that's close enough. I was close to right, there's basically an over-strength Aviation Assault Battalion supporting New York, say the left-overs from the Tenth Mountain's Combat Aviation Brigade that were not involved in harrying the Seeds' march south from Potsdam.

Pfeil: sorry to disappoint you, but no Nanoha this chapter. That's planned for next chapter. Current plan for next chapter has two scenes outside the cities, and one scene each for Laura, Nanoha, and Allison, though the order of all of the above is up for grabs.

hignum: Most of the kids actively hate Natalia at this point, witness how they all refer to her as 'the Russian' instead of by name. But they're all good kids as well, and willing to let Laura have a crack at bringing her back for trial, rather than go after personal vengeance. There is a lot of mutual assistance going on at the moment, but General Truman's comment about 'The Allies' was slightly premature (only slightly, though). Lastly, I'm afraid I'm not much of a romance writer, so beyond the pairings already in play, I don't think much more will pop up. I've got vague ideas for a couple of pairings, especially as part of a distant epilogue I'm considering, but nothing involving Singum I'm afraid. She's too stoic and dedicated to her purpose for such frivolities.

Baughn: I'm glad you're enjoying this, but you really should know better than to make predictions before you read the end of the story. Victory, after all, frequently depends on the definition. I'll tell you what I tell everyone who makes these predictions – you're wrong. I won't say how you're wrong, that would be cheating, but there you go.

Templar Prime: Sorry for the long delay, but as I said above, NaNoWriMo. The Pave Spectre and the Spectre II differ primarily in concentration of armament. The II trades a pair of Vulcans for what is basically the front end of an A-10 Warthog – half the guns, more hit per bullet, effectively the same rate of fire. The Spectre II also replaces one of the Pave Spectre's Bofors with a full-up artillery piece. All the AC-130s are being converted to the Spectre II currently, though, so by the time this story's set in five years or so, they would all be converted over. You are correct that Allison & Megan never had much on-screen interaction, though there have been mentions of them prowling the campus woods together (more than just last chapter, I think). Megan would not have the least clue what Allison is always going on about with the Navajo, but would find the Navajo history just as horrific as Allison does, if less personal. Allison's reactions to Megan are more complicated. Megan's status as 'English' would not be as much of a factor – Allison's prejudice is more general and not applied to specific people. Megan isn't 'English' to Allison at this point, she's Megan. The problem would stem from Megan's shapeshifting, and Allison's familiarity with Navajo mythology of the skinwalkers. Look them up – they're beyond unpleasant. For the shapeshifting alone, Megan makes Allison nervous, though continued exposure mitigates that somewhat.

The Sandman: Part of the reason the Guard is still hitting New York has already been mentioned – Szash _wants_ to hit Hayate and the Wolkenritter, to eliminate them. Szash _wants_ to hit strengthened fortified positions and destroy them, to prove that the Guard is strong enough to do it. She can't reach her toughest foe directly in Japan, so she's drawing that foe out while also hammering the local powers-that-be. She does also want to avoid civilian casualties, though that hasn't gotten much play, hence hitting someplace she's warned. As for why they're going after New York instead of DC or Norfolk, that is part and parcel of Al Hanthis' view of the world and of political, social, and economic forces. That'll play a part in how they react to everything, and there are hints of it throughout their plans and their reactions to other events. The secondary forces moving during these attacks will also be hitting some 'strange' targets that make sense from their perspective, but are going to be off the wall by modern standards. Something else to keep in mind is teleports – Szash is used to thinking in terms of teleportation time-frames for strike and response. Yes, swapping targets at the last second would mean avoiding America's conventional armed forces, but she does not consider those a threat to anything but the Seed, which are just there for terror tactics and general destruction anyhow. Hayate could respond to counter Szash's mages wherever Szash attacked, in a matter of seconds. So why not hit the same city as the Seed, where the Seed will be there to provide cover from Hayate's mages if things turn sour? Lastly, there's numbers to consider. Szash simply does not have the manpower to attack the US industrial complex on that scale, even as degraded as that complex has become since the sixties. Any forces she sent out like that would either have to be large and thus take a great deal of time to hit that many dispersed targets, or small and spread out and thus easy pickings for Hayate. Hitting one central location concentrates the enemy's forces, yes, but also draws them off from Szash's other targets, just like Hong Kong did. Like any general, Szash has to make trade-offs between what she can do, what she wants to do, and what she _needs_ to do. What she most needs right now is not victory, but the destruction of Hayate's device-mages (the Circles' lack the flexibility and strategic speed to be a real threat) and territory with useable resources. Hitting New York and London lets her use relatively small forces to tie down and possibly eliminate the device-mages while lower-tier forces handle the conquest duties.

SAMAS: I'm aware that I misspell Nanoha's last name, which is why I try to avoid using it. I've gotten a slew of corrections over the years, and to be honest I don't pay much attention to it anymore. Yes, I know, that makes me a lazy slacker who isn't fit to put pen to paper and all that, but… eh, I've screwed it up often enough by now people would probably complain if I got it right:). Thanks for the concern, though, and the info on the familiars. I've got the movie sitting on a disc, but haven't watched it yet.


	44. 43 Hail, Morrigan

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-43 – Hail, Morrigan-

Corporal Paul McTavish had accounted himself well-prepared for the battle. He had fought in Iraq and in Afghanistan, one tour each, and however calm things were supposed to be in both theaters these days, there was no such thing as 'peaceful' in those regions. He had seen, in his opinion, the worst war could throw at a man, and acquitted himself well enough to be assigned to the Royal Guard, standing about London in his pretty red uniform keeping an eye on the tourists. He had heard the stories, listened to the briefings, seen the videos of Seed from Hong Kong. He knew what to expect.

Even better, his assigned post holding the mouth of the Blackwall Tunnel – in the event the Army was forced to fall back all the way to the north bank – meant that by the time he faced Seed, the creatures would be thinned out and worn down. He was rear-guard, just supposed to hold steady and provide some covering fire. It was one of the simplest jobs available, and one with the clearest honor – he was one of the guys who would make sure the rest of the Army got to live, if things went in the toilet. It also got him out of the nasty business of street-to-street combat under hostile artillery. Even the steady drumbeat of rain on his helmet did not particularly bother him – it was at least cool.

Then, almost an hour after the start of the battle, the Seed came boiling up out of the Thames, and his job suddenly became much harder. When the creatures 'went to ground' the day before, some had apparently worked their way to the river east and west of the city, or evaded the Royal Navy to swim up the river from the sea, to hit the Army in the rear. Horror stories aside, though, the Seed proved to be more killable than he expected, especially with the killing-zone of cleared construction yards between the tunnel entrances and river banks. The creatures blended with the rain and the dark fairly well, but Lieutenant White managed a lucky hit with their one Javelin on the second Seed, taking it out in a single hit. That left two more hitting their position from the west, three more hitting the other squad at the eastern entrance. The three old Browning Fifties someone had dug up proved to be worth their reputation, hammering the Seed back through sheer impact, and keeping them off-balance while the rest of the squad fired disposable LASMs, and McTavish smirked as the last fled back into the river.

McTavish was just relaxing from that assault, sharing a grin with his buddy Finn at their success, when a scream behind him made him twist around, fumbling for the third LASM strapped to his web harness. Behind him, already tearing the Lieutenant and Private Casey apart at the third line of sandbags, were three more Seed. Even as he got the disposable missile around, he realized what had happened – the creatures had breached the tunnels beneath the river, and hit the Lieutenant where he had dug in at the tunnel-mouth.

McTavish fired his missile without really aiming, just getting it pointed in the right general direction. Such had proven as effective as aiming before, and the missile almost hit, but the Seed that had just killed the Lieutenant dodged McTavish's and Finn's missiles in the same motion, then lunged at them, while its partners split left and right. One staggered abruptly as it sprouted ten or twelve steel spines, but it was not the one coming at McTavish so he ignored that in favor of lunging for the crate of missiles at his feet. He and Finn crashed into one another aiming for the same target, then Finn got the first missile out.

McTavish felt something massive hit the ground right next to him, and hit the deck completely, rolling to his left away from Finn and the missiles, fresh round clutched in a death-grip, and heard Finn shriek in agony just before a missile lit off and exploded simultaneously. He got over on his back, looking up at a Seed standing by his head, its far arm a mangled mess, and his hands brought up the missile by instinct…

Only to pause as a black-and-red shape blurred into the Seed, crashing into it with sufficient force to send the creature tumbling onto its back, halfway back to the second line of sandbags. The flight time gave McTavish a chance to collect his wits again, and the blurred shape resolved into a man in an Atlantis Guard uniform. He was flailing, firing off some sort of blue energy bolts towards his feet, but not hitting anything other than ground and sky. Then he whirled about by one ankle, spinning across the battle-line, and crashed into the other still-moving Seed, knocking it to the ground. As the Seed tumbled, just vaguely, McTavish could make out another form by the man's feet, a vague suggestion of shades of grey in a roughly human outline.

As whoever it was used the Guard mage as an improvised club on the far Seed, McTavish could only watch in shocked awe. Whoever it was they were slinging around an adult man like a football flag, and driving the Seed back from the mundane soldiers it had been going after. The first Seed, the one that had come after McTavish recovered and lunged at the hazy figure, but the figure twisted around, interposing the Guard mage, and to McTavish's surprise, the Seed checked its lunge.

The hazy figure become clearer as it – _she_ – lunged at the standing Seed, once again swinging the Guard mage about. The Guard managed to shake her grip, but wound up thrown into the Seed for it. Then the woman was on him, lightning fast punches hammering both mage and Seed, and she became more clearly visible as she attacked, resolving into a grey-leather clad figure that reminded McTavish of a cross between bad American Westerns and Japanese ninja movies.

An LASM shrieking in from somewhere past the fight into the second Seed shook McTavish out of his shock, and he rolled up to his knees, shouldering his own missile. He took the time to aim, waiting until the second Seed lunged at the unknown's back, and let fly. The unknown was paying more attention than McTavish thought, though, and rocketed upwards just as the Seed lunged. McTavish's missile detonated against the Seed's side as it crashed into the Guard mage still pinned against the first Seed. Four more missiles shrieked in on its heels, then the unknown lunged back into the mass, yanking the Guard mage out. Bands of white spread from her hand, wrapping around the figure, and a second later she let go and he vanished as another trio of missiles hit the stumbling Seed. Both Seed collapsed, and while they continued to move weakly, neither rose again.

The unknown took a second to look around, and McTavish got a look at her eyes, dark and fierce between cloth face mask and lowered hood. Then she wavered and vanished, disappearing without even a whisper.

A hand landing on his leg made him jump, and he grunted in surprise at the sight of Finn, bleeding from hideous gashes across his chest, right arm and shoulder scorched and burned. "Jesus, Finn…"

"Medic's busy," Finn rasped, reaching up with his good arm to hand McTavish a missile. "More comin', gotta be. You shoot, I'll keep you loaded."

McTavish considered his buddy's injuries for a second, and shook his head, "Not a chance, man." He looked around, found the medic back over by the Lieutenant, and raised a hand to signal him over, only for that hand to be clasped by no one.

Then the unknown mage faded into view. "He's busy," she said, "I'll take him. You have work to finish, ashigaru." She crouched and ran a hand over the case of LASMs, making it glow briefly, then traced a white line to McTavish's temple. "Whenever you need a new one, just focus on it, you'll be armed a moment later. Refill the crate if you run out."

Then she lifted Finn with a gesture, and the world tore asunder behind her. She lifted Finn with a wave of her hand, despite Finn's attempts to struggle. McTavish saw her turn towards the terrible rent in reality, and McTavish lunged after her, shouting, "Finn! Jesus, don't you touch him, you…!"

The mage caught McTavish's collar and twisted, slamming him into the ground while his knife, which he did not remember drawing, slid off her leather jacket like it was steel. She dumped McTavish before he even impacted and stepped into the rent. _'Steady there, soldier,'_ he heard her in his head, _'Your friend's in the best of hands, and you still have Seed to kill.'_

00000

"Would someone mind explaining to me how a people this primitive manage to field mages of this caliber?" Eri grumbled, watching as three mages and a familiar – or roughly half of the upper layer defenders over London – danced around an equal number of Guard _triads_. "They're making us look like idiot Protectors!"

"Anyone's bound to get lucky sometimes," Captain Trei said with a shrug, reaching out to teleport a Lieutenant clear of the lightning-mage just ahead of a vicious slice of her polearm.

"Sometime, sure, but ten, fifteen times?" Captain Hale was facing the other direction, not actively engaged, but watching for an opening in the array of shields around the other pair. "These four are bad enough, but there are three more just like them in New York, there's Yagami herself, and some of those child-soldiers are frighteningly reckless."

Eri huffed at that, not quite laughing, "You don't know the half of it. Sims should have blown herself up last year. But that's not really the point. Hale, warn Illy she and Dari will have to handle Testarossa on their own for a bit. We're moving against the Takamachis. Between her spells and his shields and bindings, they're more dangerous."

"Going to be tricky," Trei commented. "Those two are slick as it is, and he hasn't pulled out a mage-engine yet."

"He probably doesn't use one," Eri said, then grimaced, gesturing at the quartet of green-wrapped Guard floating behind him like a child's balloons. "It's not like he needs one, either. Let's go, down low and we'll strike from underneath."

00000

For all his years as the Bureau's Head Librarian, Yuuno Takamachi was no stranger to battle. Archaeology on non-administered worlds had never been safe, especially not with Lost Logia thrown in on top of possible pirates and other criminals, hostile locals, hostile environments, and the occasional hungry predator or plant. Occasionally helping Nanoha train to counter techniques and styles most Enforcers did not use had also helped hone his instincts. He was nowhere near Nanoha's or Fate's level, not a dedicated warrior, but he had experience and instincts that belied his official qualifications.

So he realized almost the moment Eri's triad moved that he was their target and so did Nanoha. _'Yuuno, these two are going take me a bit to wrap up, especially if you're going to be busy with those three.'_

_'I know,'_ Yuuno replied, already shifting his current batch of prisoners. Switching mental frequencies, he said, _'Megan, I need you to come up here for a minute.'_ They were over her quadrant of London, and no Circle mage would be able to take over the bindings for him. He was fairly confident Megan could, while he held the Guard off her.

_'You're doing all right now,'_ Nanoha said, _'but for a real fight…'_

When she trailed off, he asked, _'Yes?'_

_'Please remember, you promised me,'_ Nanoha asked.

Yuuno blinked, then slumped slightly. _'All right, all right.'_ Fishing in a pocket, he pulled out the flat card shape of a device, and state, "Geez, I'm a librarian, I don't need one of these things, but… Desu, set up. Vis Unita Fortior."

The rush of energy was a surprise, and he almost bobbled controlling its flow. Normally that would have been just embarrassing, but some of the overflow tried to bleed into the bindings, and given how well the Guard mages were fighting those bindings, Yuuno did not want to destabilize them unpredictably.

_'Thank you, Yuuno,'_ Nanoha told him, before turning her attention back to her own fight.

The Guard arrived before Megan did, and Yuuno deliberately took the first strike to a fast shield, instead of dodging. The rather more powerful busters that passed forward of and behind him made him smile. _The Guard really believes in bracketing their targets don't they? And their team-tactics, I'll have to remember to write them up for Yussef to study._ He shifted after the strike, interposing the prisoners both to make the Guard hesitate and to offer bait for a trap he was thinking up on the spot.

They tried to split around the prisoners, and the woman leading them launched a barrage of some sort that arced in to attack him from multiple directions. Yuuno studied the arcs for a moment, just long enough to determine that she did not have Nanoha's level of control, and lunged to his left. "Raijin's Chain," he ordered, and a moment later a lash of green runes wrapped in crackling energy leaped from his hand. The Guard mage who had been moving between Yuuno and Nanoha checked and dodged clear, allowing Yuuno past him to remain between the triad and Nanoha.

"I'm sorry," he told them, "but I'm afraid I can't let you separate my wife and I."

A ring of glowing blue runes appeared next to him, then twinned and separated to reveal Megan, Longinus wrapped around her waist. "Sorry I took so long, Yuuno-sensei. Need me to help with these three?"

"No," Yuuno shook his head, watching the Guard trio spread out above and below him, "I can handle them."

His explanation was cut off by a shriek, followed a moment later by Nanoha dropping downnext to him, one hand glowing pink. "Here you go, Yuuno, another for your collection. Just give me a second and I'll have the last of this triad, and we can entertain your new friends."

The woman across from them coughed at that, the half-formed spell in her hand destabilizing slightly. "New friends? What is wrong with you two, this is a battle not an outing!"

Nanoha frowned at her in apparent confusion while handing off her prisoner to Yuuno, "What's the difference? If you aren't enjoying yourself, you aren't giving it your all. If you get distracted by all the negative thoughts and energies, you lose focus and can't give it your best. Ah, look, my opponent's joined up with yours, Yuuno. Do you mind if I cut in?"

Yuuno smiled slightly and nodded, "Go ahead, Nanoha-chan. Just let me hand off the prisoners to Megan, I'll back you up shortly."

"You have to be joking," the woman insisted, "no soldier…"

"Ah, point," Yuuno said, raising a finger to interrupt her, "I'm a librarian and a teacher, not a soldier."

"Enforcer, what you would call a Protector," Nanoha added, raising her hand.

"Yeah, ummm," Megan raised her hand more tentatively, "student? I think I still qualify, at least?"

The woman looked like she was going to have an aneurysm right then and there, but Nanoha's Divine Buster snapped her out of it and she rolled clear, still holding her incomplete spell. The other four Guard mages moved to cover her, launching a barrage of busters. Yuuno surrounded himself and Megan with one shield, covering Nanoha's back with a second, while her own almost negligent Round Shield blocked the barrage from her front.

"Megan," Yuuno said, taking the five bindings he was maintaining and merging them to a single point-source. It took a lot more power than the separate bindings had, but Megan would have an easier time maintaining it. After a moment, he prodded her shoulder, "Megan!"

She blinked and turned to look at him, then back at Nanoha. "Umm…"

Yuuno chuckled, "Yeah, she's impressive, but we have work to do. Here, take the bindings from me. All you have to do is hold them."

"O-Okay," Megan agreed, shaking herself and reaching out with her hands. They began to glow softly blue, Longinus' gem at her left hip glowing brighter. As Yuuno passed the binding to her, the blue glow flowed down the bindings, replacing the calmer green of Yuuno's power.

"Pitiless Severance!"

The Guard woman's shout surprised Yuuno, it was a lot closer than he would have expected. He recognized the ripple of energy as it burst away from her hands in all directions, and for a moment could only wonder, _Did she recreate Hughes' spell from Hong Kong, or did he recreate hers?_ Then the destabilization effect struck, and he grimaced as nausea and collapsing magic washed over him. His shields barely noticed, and neither Nanoha's nor Megan's barrier jackets did more than flicker. But the bindings, the delicate structure of power designed to suppress and contain a living mage, collapsed completely. Yuuno had to catch Megan as she staggered in the air, holding her up for a second.

By the time Megan recovered herself, the five former captives had spread out, and the three of them were fully surrounded. Nanoha was above him, facing the woman leading the Guard. Yuuno considered the situation for a moment, took in the look on Nanoha's face, and sighed, asking, "Do you folks have a connection to the local mail systems yet? And what's your name, please, I'll need it for the invitation."

The woman blinked, triumph fading into confusion again, and asked, "What?"

Yuuno gestured to Nanoha, "Her birthday's coming up soon, I'll need to send you an invitation after this."

"Birthday?"

"Yuuno! She's the enemy right now! Ask her that later!"

The woman glanced back and forth between them, seriously confused, then swore harshly in Al Hanthis, "You people are truly insane!"

Yuuno shrugged, "You wouldn't say that if you knew her track record, miss. Arissa, Fate, Hayate, Vita... the list goes on. You've guaranteed yourself a spot in our circle of friends with that little stunt, why do you think she's smiling at you? But… Nanoha's right, that probably is for later."

"Still," Nanoha said, "I would like to know your name."

After a moment, the woman shook her head, then drew herself up. "I am Eri Makrone, Colonel of the City Guard of Al Hanthis, Adept mage. I'd offer you a chance to surrender, but I don't think you will."

Nanoha smiled at that and shook her head, "I'm sorry, but we can't. Raging Heart, set up Excellion."

00000

Laura snarled in frustration as Natalia once again shifted just clear of Hicho, a twisting dodge that was just enough to put her between – instead of in front of – the two Zippers Laura launched under cover of Hicho's strike. Two minutes now, and Laura was already pushing herself as fast as she thought she could go, as fast as she had ever gone against Sensei, and it was not enough. Bombardments with her Bolt drones were marginally more effective, forcing Natalia to shield as well as dodge, but those shields were worrisome in themselves, far too precise for Natalia's skill and experience.

The entire fight so far had been like that, Natalia barely dodging one attack, but doing it in such a way as to precisely avoid Laura's follow-ups. Natalia had done nothing offensive, and she was obviously trying to get away from Laura, and Laura was pushing herself as fast as she could, in terms of physical speed and her spells, to keep the traitor from getting away. Frustration did not begin to cover it.

Several Guard mages had tried to intervene in their battle, but however skilled they were, they lacked Natalia's preternatural evasion abilities, and they had to worry about the Wolkenritter and the Volunteers. Laura and Natalia had only each other to worry about, though Laura was starting to think she was going to have to abandon the fight to get down into the city.

It was watching one of those Guard mages break off that clued Laura in to what was going on. She had focused on him for a moment, a Positron Buster backed up by four Zippers to bracket him, using a quartet of Bolt drones to keep Natalia honest. The two had been close enough that Laura could watch both at once, and the contrast had been striking. The Guard mage – a Journeyman, Laura guessed – had dodged the Positron Buster and shielded against its blast effect, then taken two Zippers to his last-ditch shields. His dodge had been smooth enough, but had put him almost exactly where Laura had predicted. Natalia, in contrast, had arched her back in a loop around one Bolt From the Blue, and passed just beneath a second before dropping like a rock for thirty feet or so to clear the third and fourth. The fourth Bolt had just kissed her barrier jacket, enough to wreathe her in a white corona for a moment.

It was Natalia's motion that caught Laura's attention. The Guard mage _dodged_ – he saw the first shot coming and missed the follow-ups. Natalia simply _moved_, just _as_ the drones fired. Laura decided to test it, letting Natalia get enough of a lead for a Wormhole to drop Laura right on top of her as a quartet of bolt-drones hemmed her in.

It worked, after a fashion. Natalia was already sliding sideways when Laura appeared ahead of her, but she was not out of reach. Once in close, Laura just… disengaged her mind from the fight, letting her reflexes take care of her hand-to-hand, while her mind studied Natalia's responses. For someone never trained in martial arts, Natalia's blocks and dodges were precise, nearly perfect, and once again she was managing to block or negate several strikes with just a few moves of her own.

At that point, Laura managed to surprise Natalia, by stopping cold. Natalia floated through another block, then opened her eyes and blinked, drifting back slightly. Laura gave her a lopsided grin, "You're predicting me, aren't you? That eye of yours finally good enough to see something other than death?"

"Our eye is tied to the full expression of life," Natalia replied evenly, "and while we can see your end in twenty years' time, and the three lives that will grow from you, we have yet to use that information in battle."

Laura was oddly more disturbed by the thought of how many children she would have than the prediction of a short life. She shrugged it off, though, "So I'm dead by thirty-five, just means I have to live well while I can, right? Live fast, die young, leave a lot of awe-struck worshippers behind, right? So, you're learning other precog stuff, huh? Let me guess, you're looking through the null-space, right?" Natalia jerked and Laura chuckled, "Yeah, see, those things mess me up something fierce, so I paid attention whenever Hayate-sensei brought them up, and did some digging on my own. That place is outside reality, outside of _time_, so it figures."

"We do, in fact, see through the Void to view the pasts and futures. Reducing the immediate futures into a more amenable present is one of the more basic skills, one we have pursued assiduously since Allison's… visit. You should not have allowed her to warn us, we would have been less prepared for you."

Laura shrugged, "You're a wimp and a coward. I wanted to see what you would do when pushed, so I don't mind her letting you know. Wasn't my idea, though. Never warn the victim before the prank happens, unless the warning is the prank. Still," she dropped into stance again, left arm and leg leading, Hicho stretched out almost straight behind her in her right hand, "I don't have all night for this, and I think I can outpace your predictions, now that I've figured out how you're doing it."

Natalia shook her head, "You have taken too long as it is, child, and this discussion gave us the last few moments we needed. The locus points have stabilized, and we no longer need indulge your violent thrill-seeking." She held Koschei forth between them, and stretched her left arm out to the side, palm facing away from her. Both her palm and Koschei's gem began to glow as she said, "_Danse Macabre_."

Laura dropped towards Natalia and below to avoid the pulse of power that washed laterally from Koschei, but Natalia was already moving again, going up and over, using Koschei to deflect Hicho. Natalia lunged away, and before Laura could follow, the magic gathering at four points coalesced. The locations were clear enough, places where Laura had thought she almost caught Natalia, where the Russian's flight had paused and turned into complicated patterns of dodges, blocks… _and not a single spell I ever noticed,_ Laura realized. _Damn, she's getting subtle about things. That's bad. That's __very__ bad._

Laura fell back, not so much retreating as giving herself room to avoid whatever Natalia had set up, along with the witch herself. The four spheres of energy split abruptly into four, and Natalia just floated into the midst of them, smirking back at Laura. "You can no longer reach us, Laura Sims, for we are Legion, and we do not care to be reached." The sixteen spheres shifted again, not splitting but stretching, morphing, then the light shattered, revealing sixteen mages, male and female, various ages and sizes, each with a smaller version of Koschei as a device.

Laura almost cut and ran. She knew her limits by now, and facing seventeen mages at once was a bit much. But even as they moved to surround her, she remembered 'Sasha', and realized what Natalia had done, what she was relying on. "Damn, girl, I guess you really have improved. Sasha used to be just a vague presence, but now you can bring up reinforcements that easily… pretty good, pretty good." She started shaking her head slowly, "but so very Russian of you, all that 'quantity over quality' thing." Laura paused, frowning, then wagged a chiding finger at Natalia, "You're problem is, you don't watch enough bad eighties sci-fi."

"Your problem is your overconfidence," Natalia replied. "You are so certain of your supremacy that you never understand that there is always a way to defeat you."

Laura chuckled, shaking her head again. "Smile for the birdy, Natalia." She dismissed Hicho with a thought, thrusting her arms out sideways, hands spread, feeling Paradox drawing the targeting information from her mind and feeding it to the drones. She only had a few left, and with a thought keyed all twenty-two at once. "Paradox, _Death Blossom_!"

00000

Precia was honestly surprised they were still free, that they had lasted long enough for the Danse Macabre. As their soldiers formed around them, and Laura finally gave them a moment to breathe, they sent a brief prayer of thanks to whatever deity watched over Natalia. Evading Laura had taken almost everything they had, and setting up the Danse Macabre on top of that had pushed them right to the limit of their skill, control, and strength, even with Koschei's support coming willingly for a change.

Their eyes were burning cold, like someone poured liquid nitrogen into them, and they could only vaguely see out of their left eye, which was making them nauseous. As Ahmu had warned Natalia, glancing across the Void so frequently in so short a span of time, however simple a technique, had a price. Further afield, Their back hurt abominably, as did their knees, hips, and elbows, a combination that had Precia fairly sure poor Natalia would need the healers' attention immediately after the battle. Not that the stubborn girl would go, that would not happen until Sasha demanded it.

But now, with their soldiers around them, Precia had thought they could relax a little, had even considered bringing Natalia back into control. The girl could not be coddled forever, after all, and the situation should have been safe enough.

Then Laura looked at their army and… laughed. Shrugged it off and dismissed it as irrelevant. There was every chance the crazy paladin had cooked up something new, but their soldiers were, while they lasted, equivalent to an Adept in their own right. They had spent the last weeks deliberately upgrading the constructs' design specifically to fight Laura, and Laura had to know that.

For a moment, as Laura initiated her spell, Precia thought they had overestimated the girl, given her too much credit. The spell certainly sounded fatal enough, and even if it was arguable if Laura's oath covered temporary constructs, Precia and Natalia were still in range for whatever she unleashed to deal with the Danse Macabre's soldiers. With some desperation, therefor, they reached across the Void once more, straining their eyes and feeling the runes beneath their left eye burn colder, and just as the first drone fired, at point-blank range from between Laura and the soldiers, they Saw the future.

White.

Nothing but white, whenever they looked. Natalia stirred, despite the situation, both of them frantically stretching further and further aside, trying to find some way through the next few seconds that did not involve… whatever was gathering in front of Laura as she slowly brought her spread hands together before her chest.

But nothing presented itself, even as their soldiers opened fire, raining buster spells and lashing out with draining bindings. There was nothing in their immediate futures but white and pain. Laura did not even attempt to dodge the counter-attacks, simply weathered the storm beneath Paradox's automatic defenses, patently focused on whatever she was doing. The look of glee on her face sped their search, and they reached further and further afield, to possibilities so remote they could not be expressed rationally…

Laura's shout cut them off, "_Detonation!_"

The world went white.

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Laura's breath was coming in gasps as she tried, desperately, to hold the spell together. She had pulled it off with up to seven bolt-drones in practice… once. Immediately after that success, Hayate-sensei's ban on her working with Nanoha-sensei occurred, and after that Sensei would not let her use more than a couple at a time, to get the mechanics of it down.

The attacks from Natalia's constructs were nothing beside trying to control that chaotic flow of power. Gaussian Field deflected most of the attacks, and the unstable bundle of semi-conflicting energies Laura was gathering destabilized the binding attempts. An experienced mage could have determined what was happening and compensated fairly easily, but Natalia's constructs were not that creative, apparently. Only two got through the field to strike her directly, and while those hurt, Laura ignored them in the face of the far more dangerous spell in front of her.

Twenty-two bolt drones put out a lot more loose energy than seven, though, and the last few were utterly useless, in their primary purpose. The wasted energy from their predecessors and the bleed from Laura's attempt to corral that energy, destabilized the drone's limited processors and control. But they added to the aggregate, and long before Laura's palms met in the midst of a massive sphere of light, her control over that sphere started faltering.

The last two drones were still in the process of firing their cartridges when she felt the pause in her struggle for control of her spell, the little hesitation that just preceded total loss of all control, and she triggered the effect that had so surprised Nanoha, "_Detonation_!"

On the downside, unlike with Hicho's or Gaussian Field's self-destruct blasts, Death Blossom's final stage was neither predictable enough nor small enough for Gaussian Field to really deflect it. Laura's armor, reinforced by some of the gathered energies, blunted the blast, especially with her better ability to predict the blast than whoever else was caught in the radius. But it still ripped her armor away and pummeled her like a whole squad of boxers with a mad on.

On the upside, the detonation's radius and power were proportional to the number of drones Laura fired. It was not a linear growth, the increases in both tapered off as more drones were fired and the total area involved became greater. But with twenty-two drones, or thereabouts, Death Blossom's radius over New York was a quarter mile, and it scattered Natalia's constructs before it like leaves on the wind.

Natalia herself was launched almost directly away from Laura, but it was obvious to Laura that she was disoriented at least, and possibly unconscious. She was falling too slowly to be out completely, but Koschei's automatics might see to that, depending on how Natalia had them programmed. Laura preferred fewer safeties herself, but Natalia was not a warrior, so Laura figured Koschei's automatics were probably a lot more conservative.

Regardless of whether she was out or just stunned, she was falling free, and Laura smirked in triumph as she launched in pursuit. A Wormhole would have been faster, but Laura could feel the instability lingering in the area, could perceive the weird colors and smells that were part of a dimensional instability. Death Blossom limited the destabilization caused by undirected magical energy left over by the Bolt Drones, but it was still a massive energy release itself. So Laura went direct, accelerating to her best straight-line speed, somewhere in neighborhood of hundreds of miles per hour.

She was stretching out her hand, Heisenberg's Rule ready to twist Natalia up in knots, when an unknown fist crashed into the side of her face.

Laura rolled away from that, Hicho materializing in her hand even as she stood on nothing to spin into a kick against her attacker. She caught nothing but air with the kick, the follow-up with Hicho, or the paired Zippers that followed that. The man was not even there, just _gone_ each time, then he was over by Natalia, cradling her with one arm. He was an older man, not in Guard or Protector uniform, white hair floating loose around his face, aiming a confident smirk in her direction.

"My apologies, Paladin," he said in passable Japanese, "but I am afraid I still have some need of my apprentice here. You can have her when I'm done," his smirk shifted, and he shrugged, "by which point she will most likely run to you with open arms. For now, however… well fought, and best of luck. You might want to look to your minions, though, they've bitten off more than they can chew." Then he and Natalia vanished in a flash of reddish purple light.

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Allison only needed a few seconds to re-orient after dropping off the Private at Portland Hospital, in London's northern reaches. The hospital was not particularly close to the battle, so for the moment it was mostly treating those civilians that did not quite get out in time, and a few minor injuries to troops from the artillery forces.

Things looked to be going well, or at least roughly according to plan. The southern-most forces were now falling back into the northern forces, some crossing the river but most occupying positions amongst the Irish and Coldstream Guards. For some reason the forces headed across the river seemed to be avoiding the tunnels under the Thames, in favor of the more vulnerable bridges over the river.

Al Hanthis' Guard was still mostly concentrated south of the city, and most of them had dropped low to directly support the Seed. Considering that, and how London was spread out rather than up, Allison decided she was just as glad she was not in New York, rain or not. The idea of fighting both Seed and Guard mages in close quarters like amongst New York's skyscrapers was not pleasant.

Looking up, Allison almost decided to go lend the Takamachis a hand, but Megan was up there already, and as she hesitated, _something_ titanic detonated up there, a vaguely familiar pink blast that reminded Allison badly of Laura cutting loose. So she turned her attention back to her own responsibilities, and scanned over the Coldstream and Irish Guard positions. The Circle wolfpacks were doing their usual semi-pathetic job, though whoever was in charge of them here had been smart enough to borrow the idea of the Guards' triads, three wolfpack mages operating in support of one another, instead of each haring off on their own.

The Circle mages with devices were another matter. They were still sub-par, by Allison's standards, but she was beginning to see what Tai-yu-sensei had been saying about the Circle mages' skills. They were very deliberate in their actions, either attacking or defending, never both, and they were very mechanical, fighting by rote as much as anything. But they were _fast_, unleashing their mid-strength buster spells – either of a pair called Fire Hammer and Lightning Scythe – almost as fast as Laura could unload a pair of her light Zippers. She was not sure how effective Maunders' Dogs were being, but as far as she could tell they were all still in the air, so they were doing better than the wolfpacks had ever managed.

Taking in the various positions, Allison grinned slightly to find the greatest concentration of Circle mages off over the Coldstream Guard. That meant she could join Juliet over the Irish Guard and keep an eye on her boys. Both British Army units had demonstrated remarkable tenacity and fortitude, in her eyes, and had stayed steady despite the nature of their foes. For troops that could not hurt a Guard Mage and were faced with foes they could only barely harm, they were proving remarkably stubborn.

So she dropped low over the Thames and headed south, looking for any sign of a Guard mage getting away from the Circles, or of a unit that needed cover from a Seed. She was really hoping for a combination of both. The fight over the tunnel mouth had been a surprise to her, almost as much as to the poor bastard she had snuck up on. She had just grabbed the Guard mage's ankle when she spotted the flight of missiles all aimed into a secure position. Spotting the Seed, she had gone with the first weapons to hand, and one of those had happened to be the Guard mage. At most, she had expected the Seed's magic nullification to mess up his shields and make him easier to bind and teleport to the Circle's secure cells.

The way the second Seed had checked at the last moment had been surprising, and then inspiring. The thing had plainly recognized the Guard mage and acted to avoid harming him, so there was patently some sort of friendly-recognition programming in there somewhere, something that would get the Seed to hesitate and back off, something she could exploit.

Now she found her first target easily enough. A Guard triad was pushing up to Tower Bridge, and the Circle forces there were nothing but wolfpacks. A device mage was just what they needed to even the odds, and Allison grinned behind her veil as she wrapped herself once more in the Cloak of Shades.

Stalking a target through the open air was a rather weird experience, for her. She was used to cover and terrain, watching her step and checking wind and line of sight. Up in the open air, though, there was no cover, as such. The closest she could come to that were the shrieks and roars of missiles from below, and the Circle mages' spells from above. Despite the lack of cover, with her Cloak of Shades and the battle raging, Allison was utterly invisible, passing unnoticed, but it still unnerved her immensely.

Before she could reach her target, however, something else caught her attention – motion, rapid motion, in the street she was passing over, accompanied by shrieks that were entirely natural in origin. A glance down showed her soldiers pinned by a trio of Seed, two normal ones moving north, and one of the big ones, the 'Alphas' Halley had called them, that had somehow gotten behind the soldiers.

Mentally she hesitated, debating. A Guard mage would make an excellent defense against one of those big boys, but she probably did not have time to surprise said Guard mage, get hold of her, and bring her to the fight.

Physically, even before she made the decision, she dropped out of the sky like a vengeful ghost. The Alpha was the immediate problem, it was too big and tough for the soldiers to handle, and between them and their escape route. Allison had not had time to pick up another supply of rebar after the battle at the tunnel, so she opted for the next best thing – the same telekinetic spells that manipulated the rebar ripped an old-fashioned streetlight out of the ground and slammed it into the Alpha's gut, even as she nailed the creature in the head with a modified axe-kick. The kick snapped the creature's head down, making it stumble as it tried to recover from the light-pole that interrupted its attack on a man with a missile-launcher. The impact also jarred Allison's heel and leg, and the collapse of the telekinetic spell and her Cloak of Shades sent a painful tingle up her leg as the energies backlashed through her. Neither alone was enough to do more than annoy her, and even combined it only stiffened her leg for a few seconds, but it still hurt and the Alpha was already recovering.

"Juliet, you better have been right," Allison muttered, focusing power through Gallóglaigh and into her limbs and eyes, "_Vivace_."

Juliet's spell took hold, and the world around Allison distorted oddly. What light there was faded, even the flashes and strobes of busters and explosions becoming muted, and colors shifted towards slightly, taking on a bluer shade. The soldiers slowed drastically, their every motion becoming so painfully slow, but the three Seed were still moving fast, almost as fast as Allison herself.

The speed difference, the fact that she was moving as fast as the Seed now, let Allison dodge back from the Alpha's first counter-attack, a double-clawed swipe trying to catch and pin her. It even allowed her to pummel the Alpha's face with four good hits… that it did not seem to notice, even as Allison's hands set to throbbing.

_Right,_ Allison reminded herself as she fled upwards for a moment, _Vivace's just speed. Need something else to hit hard, but Triphammer's basically a buster, Seed won't notice._

She almost decided to use Gallóglaigh. Even if the magical effects which normally provided the blade's edge would not affect the Seed, the device was still a solid weapon. But they had no idea how a Seed's nullification would affect a device, and the last thing she wanted was to lose her device suddenly while surrounded by mage-killing constructs.

Then her gaze lighted on a long tube lying half in an apartment building, and she blinked, a grin spreading over her face. "A bit big, but kind of appropriate, I guess," she muttered, and shot past the nearest Seed as fast as Gallóglaigh's flight spell could push her. She twisted around its attempt to strike her in passing, and then her left hand contacted the tube, magic adhered it to her palm, and she arced upward, whirling the heavy length of metal about in a blurring arc as fast as Vivace would let her. The tube stopped abruptly, kinking ever so slightly, as it connected with the nearest Seed and catapulted it across the street and through a brick wall.

That gave her a bit of time to study her new weapon, and she blinked in awe – it appeared to be the man cannon from the destroyed Challenger tank sitting up the street a short distance. The firing chamber that should have been at one end was missing, and that end was a blasted shattered wreck, but the mounting equipment was still partially present, scorched and sheered. "A tank cannon," she muttered, then nodded sharply, "I can work with this."

She set the cannon near her shoulder, then sank Gallóglaigh into the metal to act as a grip about a third of the way from the business end of the cannon. The two Seed still in sight were closing on her, still moving at human speeds, and Allison met them with a charge, intending to slip aside and nail the normal Seed.

The Alpha proved canny, though, and as she jinked left to go for the weaker Seed just ahead of it, the blasted thing changed direction like a deer and lunged to intercept her charge as she passed the normal Seed. She aborted at the last second, arcing up and converting her lateral swing into an up-and-over flourish, and managed to tag the Alpha on the back of the head, hard enough to send it tumbling this time just as one of the soldiers' missiles fired.

The proximity to the Seed was wearing on Vivace's delicate structure, though, and Allison shot upwards to renew it before it failed, only to jerk sideways with a shriek as three claws ripped straight through her barrier jacket and sank into the back of her left leg. The combination of Seed contact, pain, and panic stripped her of Vivace's speed and her flight spells, and she went tumbling into the sandbag wall the soldiers had been trying to retreat from. The cannon, falling out of her grip without her magic to hold it, took most of the impact, but caught her in the gut and knocked her breath out.

Between the impact and the roar of battle suddenly resuming – men shouting all around her, missiles flying, guns thundering, she had not noticed the absence of sound in Vivace until the spell failed – for a couple seconds it was all Allison could do not to black out. As she recovered from that, though, and saw the soldiers she had tried to save now covering her, shock faded beneath embarrassment and rage. She was one of Hayate's students, one of Laura's fellow warriors. She was supposed to be untouchable, unstoppable, by anything less than Szash herself.

Letting loose a banshee howl of rage and pain, Allison shoved herself upright, launching some of the sandbags she had landed in at the Seed with a vaguely controlled wave of magic. The same wave of magic returned the cannon barrel to her hand briefly, before she threw it like a spear, accelerating it as hard as she could with another shout. The normal Seed saw it coming, and almost managed to dodge, but the cannon was still accelerating when it hit the creature in the side, tearing out a piece of its hip.

Allison stood there a second, every eye in the vicinity on her, and then gestured once, reclaiming her weapon, Gallóglaigh still embedded in its side. She watched the Alpha as it crouched in the street watching her, and calmly pulled Gallóglaigh free of the cannon. Then she leaned her head to the side and growled, "On your feet, ashigaru. You've got killing to do. Get to the other barricade and get the guns up."

Leaving the shocked man to recover himself, she turned fully back to the Alpha and snarled, hefting her cannon barrel. "Come on, you over-grown lizard. Let's see how good you are all by your lonesome. Vivace."

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Author's Notes: Um, yup, the fic and I are both still alive. I don't have a Side-Story to accompany this chapter, and had to deny myself any other writing for the last couple weeks to get this one done in time to post at the one year mark, but after a couple days it started to flow again, in fits and starts. Rough year, though less 'oh the horror' than 'what a roller-coaster', lots of ups and downs and disruptions to my personal schedule. Also, after Bad Moon Rising, I had some trouble picturing how this chapter would work, especially a fight scene involving Nanoha. I'm finding that, awesome as I know it would be, I just can't get it to work. So this chapter turned into a study in Allison's contributions to London's defense. I don't know when the next chapter will be done, but I'm going to try and keep it from being too long. I'm in the middle of another job hunt, though (job number four in a year, woo!), so… yeah. If it helps, I still haven't finished the book I started for NaNoWriMo 2010, either.

LASM – the current British version of the old LAWS (Light Anti-tank Weapon System), this is a one-shot disposable missile launcher, firing a small unguided rocket. It's in the same class and scale as the venerable RPG.

'The Fifty' – In US Military parlance, an M-2, a Browning .50 caliber machine-gun. Since it was introduced it has picked up other names such as 'Ma Deuce', 'Browning Fifty', or just 'the Fifty'. Originally produced in the 1930s, it is still in service (and, I believe, still in _production_) today, as no one has yet produced a machine-gun that hits as hard and as reliably. I forget what role it was originally produced for, but by the time the US entered WWII, it was a mounted in tanks, on jeeps & trucks, on tri-pods, on ships, in aircraft (both the famed P-51 Mustang and the B-17 were armed with Ma Deuce), and anywhere else someone figured could handle the weight and recoil. As a comment on the insanity and ingenuity of soldiers everywhere, some have even been fitted with scopes and used as sniper rifles.

Ashigaru – Japanese infantry soldiers of the samurai era. Allison's use is not entirely accurate.

Vis Unita Fortior – United Power Is Stronger, the motto of Carrier Air Wing 15, USN. It seemed appropriate for Yuuno, given that he has always been stronger when fighting with/protecting Nanoha. And yes, Yuuno and Nanoha were playing merry hob with the Guard _without_ fighting at their best.

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Spells

Pitiless Severance – This is a spell designed to disrupt delicate magical effects in a specific area. It is similar to Hughes' EMP spell, but more restrained. Despite Yuuno's wondering, this spell is neither a re-creation nor source for Hughes' EMP spell. They both rely upon the same principles, but rely on a slightly different approach. Hughes had very little in the way of magical infrastructure to worry about when crafting his EMP spell, while Al Hanthis is entirely built upon magic, so Pitiless Severance is deliberately not as all-encompassing as EMP.

Danse Macabre – This spell takes some time and preparation to set up. The mage in question sets up locus points in multiples of four, and once all are prepared and the key spell triggered, those locus points resolve into constructs. Similar to Natalia's Zacha construct, in that they have functional linker cores but are time-limited. The constructs created from this spell are also less intelligent and not self-aware. The name comes from a common medieval allegory on the universality and inescapability of death. As I originally learned it, it was a visual representation of four skeletal figures dancing together – a peasant, a soldier, a priest, and a noble.

Death Blossom – Laura's answer to Signum's continued insistence that she does not have an 'area attack' spell, and what she was working on with Nanoha that got the both of them banned from Hayate's workrooms. It is simple enough in execution – she fires however many bolt drones in rapid succession, while using the gathering-effect from Starlight Breaker to draw in as much of the drones' wasted energy as she can. Laura is not good enough to fuse such disparate energies into a coherent buster like Starlight Breaker, but she can make anything explode, which is all she needs the gathered energy to do. It is based on the Death Blossom system from the movie The Last Starfighter, which I highly recommend as one of the more ambitious pre-1990s CGI movies.

Vivace – Allison and Juliet have been trading spell notes and spells, though neither is as good with the other's spells. Vivace is one of Juilet's, providing acceleration of the mage's speed and maneuverability. Allison's version of Vivace does not properly interface with her senses, thus resulting in the distortions she experienced compared with Juliet's.

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Review Replies

General Reply: Since it came up in many of the reviews, here's an explanation of The Creepy Twin. Rhys is the Creepy Twin. Saeryn is the Creepy Twin. Saeryn and Rhys together are the Creepy Twin. Individually and together, they are referred to as The Creepy Twin, no 's'. It started as a little jab at how the twins try to play up that trope to keep people at a distance. Over time it has become for me (and becomes in story) a back-handed compliment at how well they work together and the fact that you only ever see both of them. So yes, The Creepy Twin is a deliberately confusing nickname, applying to either girl individually or both at once.

Jack Inqu: Allina's plan with Hong Kong will play out next chapter, probably. Yussef and Laura have both learned a lot, and Yussef especially understands putting aside petty differences in the face of greater threats. Natalia, in preparing for Laura, played to her strengths and what is, admittedly, one hell of a trump card – she can read the futures, to an extent. Even with that, though, no, she was not quite capable of defeating Laura – but Ahmu is a different sort of opponent. As for the scenes with the mundane soldiers, I am finding more and more that I can see the 'awesome' side of the magic more by writing those scenes. For the kids, it's all a matter of learning and practice, while for the troopers it's _magic_.

pfeil: Had time to re-read it all yet?;) Monikers and the piling on thereof, such as Natalia becoming 'the Russian' to Hayate's kids and the way everyone is picking up 'callsigns', are something that I've always been fascinated by. It does get confusing, though, especially since I make a point of not having everyone use all those names (you'll never see Maunders refer to herself as 'Mad Maudlin', for instance).

hignum: Natalia lost, yes, but Ahmu still has a use for her, so… not yet. Cidela will return, the only questions are when and how. She does have her part to play, though it will be a couple more chapters before I get back to her.

Arkeus: Your welcome for the previous update, and my apologies for the long delay on this one.

MaZe-Pallas: Again, apologies for the long delay. Regarding the 'error' in Juliet's quote – she regards 'Ready to go' and 'Ready to go and then some' as being the same saying. I did write it rather confusingly, though, so I've gone back and corrected it to be clearer what phrase she's talking about when.

Kell Shock: Corrected the us/use error, thanks! As for the possessive-s, it isn't written after a word that ends in an 's' sound, so "the Goddess' awakening" is the proper form, while for a male deity it would be "the God's awakening". Allina is making a second attempt, and with more backup, but the Guard has had time to study what she did last time, too, so they'll have advantages as well. It'll be interesting. On an individual combat level, Laura surpassed Yussef before the story even began. Remember, Laura's a warrior, an excellent individual combatant, while Yussef is a soldier and leader of soldiers. You are precisely right that they are on different tracks. That doesn't mean they won't get into arguments and cross swords once in a while, but they have two distinctly different approaches to almost all situations. How was the scene from Natalia/Precia's perspective above? Crazy enough for you? And she didn't so much escape as get rescued. Updated the chapter title, I hadn't realized I duplicated. Sorry about that!

Templar Prime: I've only recently discovered Butcher's work, and I can't decide if I like it or not – first person view point tends to rub me the wrong way. As I told Kell Shock, my apologies for duplicating the chapter title, that's been fixed. I'm going to have to start reviewing the list of chapters every time I start a new one now. I don't know how much crew space a Lancer has, to be honest, but I do know that a lot of bombers are designed with multiple crews in mind for long-endurance missions, especially those designed after the advent of in-flight refueling. It made sense to me, especially as the Lancers were kept on station for a long while before Al Hanthis showed up. Yes, Laura nicknamed Nanoha 'Gun-Bunny-Sensei', and with good reason, though I don't yet know if Nanoha knows that – remember, Laura does have _some_ restraint in the nature of self-preservation. Thank you for the compliment on Juliet's fight, I've always seen her as somewhere between Laura and Vita – fast and crazy, with more than a little rage fueling the mix. You were correct that the 'biological weapon' line should have been 'use of', that's fixed, too. As for the nine Twilight Paladins, there's some debate in my mind as to who they are, mostly if/how many of the kids will die before the date of Juliet's quote (which is from somewhere around twenty-five to thirty years after the current time in-story).

Anonymous Reviewer: Laura's penchant for nicknaming people is a lot of fun, though I have not figured out her nicknames for everyone. It is fair to say, though, that if you find a character's nickname that isn't 'Red Baron' style, it's probably Laura's. Each of the future quotes has some hint of the future (though I do need to figure out one for the Myrmidons, the Paladins are getting too much attention), but the hints are mostly about the shape of things to come rather than the outcome of the story itself. I tend not to do introspection before combat because I'm more action oriented myself – I like to see things happening and see characters interacting, not just someone sitting around contemplating their navel. Never cared for philosophy courses, for instance. Regarding the Side Story, I'm still not sure how Megan's family will react to her decision. Yes, it could be 'upholding the family honor' like her uncle Thomas, but they could equally take it as a willful child abandoning the family to pursue strangeness.

Maimakterion: Okay, in order by review posting… "The power to destroy a thing is to control that thing" – the quote is from Dune, the first book – Paul Atreides says it to the Padishaw Emperor towards the end, when he offers to destroy the Spice and thus destroy the Empire. It's an all-around useful quote, and on re-reading Chapte 19, it does rather fit the tone. I haven't described most of the kids' devices' sealed forms, but I can think of two off the top of my head, other than the original three. Allison's device doesn't _have_ a sealed form – active or not, it's a bowie knife. The other is Megan's, which gets complicated – Loginus, being just as morphic as its master, doesn't have 'a' sealed form, and if you pay attention, you'll see that almost every time I describe it (stored or active), it's different. Only the twin-tined spear form is regularly used. Laura and Allison won't be assaulting Mars in Endless Waltz. I may do a Side Story eventually on that mission, as I've got some ideas for scenes, but not until after Endless Waltz is concluded (so yes, Willan will survive this story). Regarding the new organizations, I do have defined roles in mind for each of them in the Terran Empire (which reminds me of 40K, yes, but also of Star Trek's Mirror Universe, for some reason). Most of their roles will be revealed in various future-quotes, though much later on I may do a Side Story similar to the one on the Seed of Leviathan, organizing and posting my notes on how the Empire is put together and run (trust me, the Empire's a huge complicated mess, due to all the factions and forces involved). I already have a couple such quotes planned out for the Black Dogs (which is the most confusing of the units), the Myrmidons, the Paladins, and Harlaoun's Knights. All I'll say about the last group at present is that they're Chrono's and they're a direct result of the Bureau's actions in this story.

Sereg5: Thank you for the compliment, that means a lot to me. I know I don't know enough about a lot of the countries/peoples I write about, so I try to be cautious and do some research before getting too specific. If you spot any such mistakes in Juliet's scenes (or anywhere, really) please feel free to let me know, and I'll try to fix them.

MissGardenia: Thank you for the compliment, though I don't think Laura's fight above quite lived up to the future compliment. I had that one written shortly after I started this story, though originally it was Chrono saying it with a slightly different tone.

PokemonJoe1: Thank you for the compliments.

Mikas131: Still alive, just having a lot of trouble writing. Too much else going on, I'm afraid. Thank you very much for the compliments regarding the characters and the story. I'm afraid I do tend to refer to non-focus character's magic in the simplest possible terms, mostly because if they aren't the focus, I'm not putting much energy into them. Most of that energy is being spent on keeping them consistent with themselves, their place in the story, and their current knowledge (you would not believe how long I spent, for this chapter, trying to figure out if Allison would know that the larger Seed are called 'Alphas', for instance). To be entirely honest, I haven't really come up with much in the way of specific spells for Al Hanthis, either, largely because magic is so integral to their way of life that it would be akin to you or I naming the method by which we dial our phone, as distinct from how someone else dials their phone.

DaManRando: Thanks for the compliment, always glad to hear I can remotely deprive others of sleep, as I have been deprived in the past. My apologies for the delay and cliffhanger, but it's been an interesting year. I'm finding I have a great deal of trouble writing Nanoha in combat – she's too good for me to do her justice with what I've tried so far, resulting in scenes like the above where her skill and power are referenced (she gave the Guard fits, demonstrated enough power Eri didn't want to face her directly with a full triad at her back, and _then_ activated Excelion mode…). Regarding the scene-separators, about halfway through writing/posting Academy Blues FFN suddenly changed how their editor handled separator marks. The original collection of dashes I used was simply removed. I should go back and re-upload all those chapters, but I'm lazy and that's a lot of chapters. You are right that the devices are weapons, though given the level of independence and intelligence they all display in the series, the Circles have some reason to be concerned. But remember where the devices and the Circles come from: cultures that remember how the Lords of Light/Masters of Vision integrated magi-tech and advanced it to incredible limits, and then almost destroyed the entire universe. In Bureau space, that resulted in a separation between the mage and the technology (devices are external to the mage, however closely bound, while Al Hanthis' mages all rely on cybernetics, for example). Among the Circles, where the fall of the Lords/Masters lasted longer and involved a much more personal civil war, it resulted in an utter rejection of magi-tech. If you want an example, look at the modern environmentalist movement – anything modern is heresy and evil and must be destroyed, even if it would accomplish the environmentalists' supposed goals. The Circles are the same way, but with actual historical and physical evidence to back them up. The Circles don't see devices, or any of the other associated magi-tech, as 'weapons' or 'technology' but as corruption and the path to the destruction of everything.

Madly Meta: Thank you for the compliment. I haven't stopped writing, I just lost a lot of steam this year.

kilopi505: Thank you for the compliment. I've read a couple Ozzallos stories (following Hell is a Martial Artist at the moment) and I'm about halfway through Nobody Dies right now, though I keep having to put take a break from it. Here's another update, and my apologies for taking so long.

horngeek: Thank you for the compliment, and here's the next chapter.

Jammin-2099: I'm glad you're enjoying the series, hope you're still reading. Laura's battle with Li was one of my favorites, and I spent a lot of time on it. I would like to see it animated, but at the same time I'd be afraid of seeing it, if it would actually live up to the scene in my head. I'm working on Nanoha's last name, on remembering it right, but I make no promises. Nanoha starting the battle in China with Starlight Breaker makes sense if you consider how it works and where she was (though admittedly, at the time I wrote the scene, I had missed the energy-collection aspect of it). A major Circle facility, a regional headquarters. Lots of mages studying, training, researching. Lots of active magic, all of it wrapped under concealment and misdirection structures sufficient to make the place utterly invisible to the Bureau. Laura could have dropped into that base and set off a Death Blossom without using a drone, and still gotten a larger detonation than she got over New York. Since her job over China was to distract and demoralize, the biggest most powerful spell she had made a good start, and the ambient energies were more than sufficient for her to use Starlight Breaker. As for the title Endless Waltz, it did come from Gundam Wing, but that was not my original intention – I thought I had read the phrase in some of my history textbooks, thought it was part of a quote from someone in the 1800s, but all I can find are references along the lines of war being a dance humans are always dancing.

AceStarleaf: hope you're still reading. I'm sorry for the delay, but as I mentioned, this year wasn't much fun. I'll try to have the next chapter up in a couple weeks, like my old pattern, but I'm afraid it'll depend on how the job-hunt goes.


	45. 44 World Aflame

**Endless Waltz**

By: Daishi Prime

-44 – World Aflame-

"Major Farin, status on the subtle knife," Gali said, leaning on his elbows on his console, eyes fixed on the holo display showing the madhouse over New York.

Farin had taken over the investigation and planning regarding the Maricopa and Konoth girls from Captain Wenar when the Protectors had approached the Guard about the possibility they were still able to access Al Hanthis' systems. Farin had not done much to alter their plan, Wenar had known what he was doing, but she had tweaked it somewhat, and the Protectors had offered their own suggestions should it occur again. Sure enough, within minutes of the strike force arriving in London, another subtle knife had occurred, just slightly more advanced than the one in Hong Kong.

Farin replied to his query immediately, "Major Ushan is having trouble communicating with us, but so far we have not lost contact and the subtle knife has not penetrated any further. The previous counter has already been negated, but I should have the Protectors' modified seizure protocol ready to run momentarily." Her professionalism faded into an almost-snarl as she concluded, "We'll catch her this time, sir, and deliver her to the General so she can give the little pest to Master Haen as a get-well present."

Gali grinned behind his hands at her tone. Nobody liked the idea of a subtle knife, of someone re-writing the delicate and personal codes in their implants to make those implants malfunction, or even take control of them. It was one of the private nightmares no one like to talk about, and why such crimes usually carried an otherwise rare death penalty, depending on the severity of the reprogramming done. Even considering that, Farin had taken the attack rather personally, apparently incensed that some 'primitive number-cruncher' dared try something so vile.

He considered her report, and the two overview holos of London and New York, and grimaced as he realized it was time to make a decision. "Captain Gars, status on primary forces?"

With two strike-forces out, two of the Guard's three senior colonels were out as well. Once again, Gali had not cheated as well as his fellows when they 'randomized' who would go and who would stay, so he was stuck minding the shop again. He had given responsibility for coordinating the conquest forces to Gars mostly because he had worked with the younger man in the past and knew he was skilled at keeping multiple operations separate in his mind while working on all of them.

"Primary forces are deployed and engaged," Gars replied immediately. "Resistance is heavier than in North Africa, but still not heavy enough. No enhanced mages, though some of the pseudo-enhanced mages are showing up. There is heavier resistance in Mecca, but that was expected. The only variance from plan so far is the inability to locate the ruling families in some of the coastal states. They are not in their palaces or bunkers, and we don't yet have information on where they went."

"How many states?"

"Six. Four from the United Arab Emirates, the royal family of Bahrain, and the core royal family of Saudi Arabia. It should not be difficult to work around them, however. The governmental structures are basically feudal – without the royals, it will either fall apart completely, in which case the Conclave should be able to install a more coherent local government, or simple transfer of loyalty will keep the unrest to a minimum."

"I think you're being overly optimistic," Gali replied, thinking of the fluctuating levels of violent resistance in the conquered territories. "But that's for later. Is anything critically wrong with accomplishing tonight's objectives?"

Captain Gars shook his head, "No, sir. Operations are on schedule, within acceptable ranges. Nobody is moving too fast or taking too long. Looks good for now."

"All right," Gali sighed, then straightened in his seat and settled his expression into a formally polite mask. Luen had briefed him on her mouse-trap plan, and considering the evidence she had gathered regarding the Blood Penance so far, Gali was morally certain who was responsible, and that they would never manage to pin it on him. Still, he had his orders, and the Conclave itself had authorized stage three of the night's operations, even giving in to the General's suggestion on who should run it for her. So he brought up a communications screen, triggered a certain code, and waited two minutes for it to be answered. Hiding his distaste, Gali said, "Good evening, Lord Protector. The Guards' operations are proceeding on schedule, and it appears all the locals' enhanced mages are fully engaged. Your people are free to proceed."

Yosho nodded politely, "Thank you, Adept. We will be opening the perimeter portals in five minutes then, and the fire teams will deploy five minutes after that."

That was according to plan as well, though Gali doubted the plan – the third stage, at least – would survive much beyond that. There were too many civilians involved for that. "Very good, Lord Protector. The perimeter watch is waiting for your signal, and will be ready to reopen the north portal for returning teams as necessary. If I may, I should get back to the battles."

"Good hunting, Adept," Yosho said, and closed the link.

Gali let his feelings show, then, grimacing and making a slight rude gesture towards where the screen had been. "Gods above please hear my plea and let Luen find something to pin on that bastard," he muttered.

"Hear, hear," rolled back from the lower stations, and Gali blinked, looking about quickly. He could not tell who had said that, though he had a sneaking suspicion it had been everyone.

00000

Watching his latest opponent, bleeding from two nasty wounds but not bound yet, vanish into a teleport, Yussef snarled silently. That had not been Noriko or Tai-yu-sensei using the school's systems, it had been Al Hanthis retrieving their wounded soldier. It was an unpleasantly familiar sight, from New York more so than from Hong Kong. He had only captured two of the seven mages he had faced that night, and did not think anyone else was averaging much better.

He only paused a moment, though, and spun about, aiming Zulfiqar at the other nearby Guard mage. Marcel had the man's attention firmly focused where it belonged, and that gave Yussef all the time in the world to build a Buster Cannon sufficient to take down his shields. _'Marcel,'_ he warned, just his friend's name.

_'Count,'_ Marcel replied.

It was one of the more basic tactics they had worked out, mental coordination of distraction element and strike element. _'Four,'_ Yussef replied immediately, Buster Cannon half charged. The strike element always began with an even number, allowing the distraction element to control the timing of their evasion.

_'Three,'_ Marcel replied a second later.

_'Two,'_ Yussef shifted position above the fight as Marcel began pressing his attack on the Guard mage, Arondight arcing around faster than a blade that size should. The Guard mage blocked and countered in a single motion, shield on one hand while the other unleashed some sort of bluish-yellow flame.

Marcel rolled out of that, armor appearing more torn and shredded than burned, and whipped Arondight around in a nearly vertical back-hand that just missed the Guard's extended arm. _'One,'_ Marcel stated, allowing Arondight's momentum to pull him to one side then dropping clear.

_'Firing,'_ Yussef warned, Zulfiqar fairly shaking around the built-up charge. The column of blue that roared away from his device was a good meter wide, and the Guard mage only just noticed it, whipping around and trying to get a shield up, when he should have dodged. The Buster Cannon slammed into his shield, and from Yussef's higher position, rammed the man into a low building below. Marcel and Yussef both hesitated to follow him in, leery of running into a Seed down there, and then came the characteristic glow of an Al Hanthis teleport.

"Three more down," Marcel commented, moving to position by Yussef.

Yussef nodded tiredly, though he and Marcel could only claim partial credit for the third member of that triad. In their initial exchange, the man had gone too high, high enough to clear the anti-air no-fire zone, into the free-fire altitudes. It had been a Spookie that got him, not one of the whatever-they-were weapons the Army had set up on rooftops in New York City, but the gunship had hammered him hard enough that the Circle wolfpacks backing up Yussef and Marcel had sufficed to bind him, one of the two Yussef had seen captured, aside from his own.

The entire Guard force over New York had been making the same sort of unthinking errors repeatedly. They obviously knew where the no-fly zone was, but they frequently crossed into it without paying attention. Their initial entrance had been right on the mark, just like over Hong Kong. But just after the Apollo birds hit, the Guard forces had scattered far and wide over the city, and had since been acting rather discombobulated. They were not uncoordinated, on the triad level, but none of the triads were really supporting each other like they had over Hong Kong, and none of the survivors of triads were reforming on the fly as they had over Hong Kong. That had let Yussef and Marcel – and the rest of the Myrmidons in their pairs – worry about one triad at a time, and the Myrmidons were finding that their devices gave them an edge in terms of power and the flexibility of their automatics.

Which was not to say they had not gotten their fair share of surprises during the night. Looking over Marcel's shredded barrier jacket as it slowly repaired, Yussef asked, "You okay?"

Marcel shrugged, "Didn't expect that last spell, whatever it was."

"Looked like a flamethrower, but…"

Marcel shook his head, "Some sort of particle cloud, like Noriko's Cascade only not blades. Sort of…" he paused, face shifting as he thought it over, then said, "It felt sort of like if you crossed Noriko's Cascade with Toushiro's Shotgun. Nasty, but I bet it's short-range only. It ripped up my barrier jacket, but I'm fine, just a couple scratches."

Yussef nodded slowly, the looked around again and spotted no obvious targets in their engagement area, so he continued the discussion. "How're we doing generally?" He had been too focused on his immediate situation, which was something he was going to have to work on. It should have been Marcel's job to handle tactical concerns, while Yussef monitored and directed the Myrmidons. But Marcel had a better head for keeping track of the others' reports, so…

Marcel took a minute to organize what he had heard from the other Myrmidons and their teachers, then reported, "Better than Hong Kong, worse than we had hoped. Szash has more mages in New York _or_ in London than she brought to Hong Kong, let alone at both cities. There only appears to be a token force suppressing attempts to shift the battle out of normal phase, but she's still brought seventy or eighty mages to each city. Thing is, they don't seem to be quite as good as the crew she brought to Hong Kong, she may have dug into her reserve forces to make two strikes simultaneously. She's down to about sixty mages here in New York, don't know about London yet."

Yussef frowned at that. Only twenty Guard mages down, given how hard he knew his boys were fighting and how many he had personally captured or seen teleported out, meant everyone else had to be screwing up by the numbers. Something about it was not right. "What's the problem?"

Marcel shrugged, "The problem is we've only got one Shamal-baa-chan, and we have no

idea how many healers they have. I've seen at least one mage that I know got teleported out with an injury, back in the fight. Ichigo was just complaining to me about the same thing." He frowned, "Also, I think that they're not just pulling mages for injuries. I think they're teleporting them out, then sending them back to another point in the battle. Sort of their version of the Husker Hail Mary. The triad before last, for instance, that one woman that got too close to the infantry's positions and caught a pair of RPGs. Surprised or not, the missiles didn't hurt her, but they surprised her, and I would lay money against Chen-chi, she called for teleport and came back somewhere else."

"Wonderful," Yussef muttered. If Al Hanthis was being that cagey with their mages, and that slick with redeploying their forces mid-battle, away from their most capable opponents and into more vulnerable locations, this was going to get a lot worse. Attrition was already thinning out the Circles' numbers, and even he and his Myrmidons, supported by their devices, were starting to get tired. The Circles had some mages with healing abilities, but they were not heading wolfpacks. Some of them had even forgone healing at all in order to _support_ wolfpacks. Shamal was doing what she could, but as a device mage she was needed topside as well, providing support to Hayate-sensei and the other high altitude mages. Add that to the teleporting, which the wolfpacks were not capable of, and Al Hanthis appeared to have some rather telling advantages, which had Yussef curious, more than worried, especially as to why the Guard had not already rolled them up. "What about the Seed?"

"The US Army's going to be a little short of anti-armor weapons in the near future, but so far the battle line is steady. They're falling back slower than the PLA did, or than I understand the British Army is, but they've also got longer lines of fire than London or Hong Kong. New York City was planned out from the start, lots of straight streets going all the way up or across the peninsula, not like London, and the Jersey side of the river is almost as good. Thing is…"

"Seed got into the subway and sewer systems," Yussef said. "Yeah, that's why we put the kids upstairs in the precinct instead of down in the subways with the wolfpacks. How is that going?"

Marcel considered it for a moment, then commented, "I never want to meet a Ranger in a dark alley. Or a tunnel. Or, really, anywhere they have time to prepare and a couple tons of explosives handy. Seed in the tunnels don't have much room to dodge, and the troops down there have a _lot_ of Javelins. They're not winning, but it's basically a stalemate. We're not losing wolfpacks to Seed at least, not yet."

Yussef grimaced a little at that. Stalemate was never a good thing in battle, even when it was what you planned for and better than you had expected. "Remind me when we get back, I want to run some tests with that rebar idea they had over in London. Luke says it's working well, but it's basically improvised, and I'd like something a little more established. And speaking of established, look over there. See those three?"

Marcel nodded, looking south where Yussef had nodded, to three Guard mages slipping north at low level. "They're probably hoping to use the Seed for cover from us, while they cover the Seed from the troops."

"Let's go disabuse them of that notion, shall we?"

00000

Gali looked up at Farin's signal. "Sir," she said, grimacing at her console, then grudgingly admitted, "this kid's better than we expected."

Gali smiled slightly, "Escaped the Protector's mouse-trap, did she?"

Farin's grimace tightened, and she shook her head, "No sir. She was never anywhere near it. She faked me out." Farin paused, schooling her features to a neutral mask, and asked, "Colonel, I am requesting permission to cut Major Ushan out of the network."

Gali blinked, and the command center went still. Cutting someone out of the network was almost never done. Cutting someone off from the network cut them off from almost all communications systems, health monitors, and even the generators that let them exceed mere human limitations. Normally only criminals convicted of felony crimes could be cut from the network, and only the Conclave could authorize such a step against a Master or Master Adept. There were exceptions, but they were drastic and almost unheard of, generally involving a direct and critical threat to the city from the mage in question. For this incident to qualify… "You cannot cleanse the subtle knife from his implants?"

Farin hesitated, then said, "I do not believe so, sir. Not remotely and not in the midst of battle. Sir, I've set of six different trap-and-counter routines. All but the first two should have been lethal, sir, and the last should have back-fed through the intruder's implants and fried her brain outright. Instead, it distracted me while she accessed the health-monitoring software and overrode it. I've already had to cut Major Ushan off from medical and maintenance, and had to lock out half of his implant codes. He can still draw power, and he can still communicate, but at this rate… Colonel, if we give her much longer, she won't be breaching his implants, she'll be in the city's grid. In the _Guard_'s grid."

In the dead silence that report caused, Gali could just hear Whelan, sitting next to Farin, whisper, "Son of a whore, how is she _doing_ this?"

Farin, without looking away from Gali, whapped Whelan on the shoulder, and said, "I have suspicions for how she's doing it, sir, but none of the responses are right for any of them. Her response time is very fast, and she appears to be multitasking. If I didn't know Yagami's people aren't as insane as the other primitivists, I would guess she has multiple independent AIs assisting her."

Gali closed his eyes at that, thinking of what limited information Kriegsen had provided on the mage-engines, what little Yosho had let them find out about the one Morisovitch brought with her. "You may be closer to right than we would prefer, Farin. Cut Major Ushan out of the network and retrieve him, list him as combat ineffective and place him in lockdown. Let me know when he's back, I'll talk to him and explain the situation to him. While you're doing that, Whelan, put together a team of Engineers. You and they will purge Major Ushan's implants completely and totally. Rebuild his implant codes from nothing up – new programs, new authorizations, new identifiers, the works. Start from the initial childhood codes and rebuild his systems from there."

The two acknowledged and turned back to their consoles, and Gali turned back to his. _Multiple AIs,_ he thought with a visceral shiver. _AIs, sub-atomic weapons, whatever the hell Yagami is… the longer we're here, the more I think we should have stayed in the Void. It was probably safer!_

Even as he thought that, alarms sounded throughout the command bay, only to almost immediately fall silent as consoles blanked, screens vanished, and the lights winked out. "Calmly," Gali shouted over the rising chorus of questions, "Emergency lights should kick on, Jasi, check the power runs, everyone else, reboot your stations…" The emergency lights kicked on, flooding the room in a dim blue glow, and then screens returned, winking back into place, but only showing black. "See," Gali said, "we have procedures for this, people…"

He trailed off as the black screen at his desk changed, a ring of silver fading in. A glance showed the same image appearing on other screens, and his stomach fell out as he realized this was not a power failure. Then a red dot appeared in the center of the silver ring, rising to a steady glow, and a frighteningly mellow voice said in one of the local languages, "Good morning, Dave."

00000

Allina blinked, then frowned. _'You catch that, 'Jana-chan?'_

_'Someone cut off the counter-intrusion efforts,'_ Niranjana replied. _'Be cautious. They keep trying to trap us, and this may be another attempt.'_

_'Well, yeah, but I didn't mean that,' _Allina said, then paused. _'That last bit they sent at the Hong Kong Beowulf… that wasn't Al Hanthis code, it was Gatecrasher… sort of, I think, maybe. Looked like it to HAL, at least.'_

Niranjana was silent for a time, and Allina let her think it over. She was still working that Master Adept's implants, and giving the poor man fits. The rest of London's defenders were avoiding him – he was high enough it was only Takamachi-sensei and the other device mages, who all knew Allina was targeting him. He had managed a few spells early on, but it was patently obvious to Allina that, with her hashing his implants, he was not going to be doing anything else until they kicked her out.

Part of her felt guilty for that. Given how deeply connected Al Hanthis' implants had to be, being caught between Allina's hacking and the Guard's counter-intrusion efforts had to be rough on him. Remembering her own experience with such an event, and Niranjana's and Noriko's injuries, she knew he was going to be in therapy for a good long while after tonight, if he was lucky. Even with half of Hong Kong and HAL buffering her, Allina felt like her nerves were overloading, a crawling pseudo-static feeling that was entirely in her head, but nonetheless real, so it had to be worse for the poor bastard caught in the middle of it.

The rest of her was utterly terrified of screwing this up. The Hong Kong Beowulf was proving to be a God-awful kludge-fest, but it was a _rugged_ God-awful kludge-fest, and some of what had hit those systems was just plain nasty. Al Hanthis was playing a very serious game, and while Allina had expected that, she was not as mentally prepared for it as she had expected. From what 'Jana and Saraswati were telling her, the Guard's counters had started at 'crippling', and moved almost immediately to 'fatal'. She was getting closer and closer to a breakthrough, had the mage-implants' programming figured out fairly well, and was certain that, with the data they already had, she and 'Jana could find a way to hack Al Hanthis. The question she was now faced with was, was she close enough to make pushing further more dangerous than it was worth?

_'We are close, Allina-chan,'_ 'Jana told her, _'I think one more attempt. If it does not work, then we will have to pull the plug and turn to more general defense of London.'_

Allina almost argued for the sake it, but then nodded. _'Yeah, okay. With what we've got so far and the Hong Kong setup, I can probably FUBAR their whole London strike force in a few minutes. Lemme set up… actually, I've been going at this like a sledgehammer. Can I borrow something from you?'_

'Jana was silent a moment, then asked in confusion, _'Borrow something from me? Borrow what?'_

_'Turing's Razor,'_ Allina replied, and swore she could feel 'Jana start.

_ 'H-how…'_

_ 'Oh come on, 'Jana-chan, you did all the programming on your PDA. You've let me in and out of that since, like, January last year, and I've been helping with Saraswati. I think it'll work now.'_

_'It's not finished,'_ 'Jana protested, _'I haven't even really tested it on our systems, let alone something as foreign as Al Hanthis' systems.'_

_ 'Oh, come on, the new versions of Gatecrasher and Ghostmaker written in Midchildan code aren't really finished either, that's why they're both still version zero point whatever. Come on, 'Jana-chan, loan me the Razor, please? Pretty please with cherry's on top? It'll be subtle and slick and they'll never see it coming after the brute-force approach I've been taking. I'll put up with what's-his-name for a whole week without complaining or sighing or anything.'_

'Jana sighed heavily at her, _'His name is Ekavir, as you know perfectly well, and did not Noriko discuss that with you last month? She certainly discussed it with me! But… all right, Saraswati, open link to HAL, initiate Turing's Razor, local control through HAL-Primary.' _

Turing's Razor was 'Jana's half-hearted attempt at her own version of Allina's Gatecrasher package. Unlike Gatecrasher, and very much like all of 'Jana's programming, it was tight code working on a subtle plan. Rather than simply hashing its way through firewalls, anti-virus, and whatever login/identification protocols were in place, Turing's Razor went deeper, to the most basic layers of network topology, where the machines themselves talked.

It worked beautifully on traditional Terran networks, subverting TCP/IP with frightening ease by convincing the whole network the intruder was simply another dumb switch. It did not work perfectly, packet-encryption was still a major hurdle for the program to get past, and Allina was fairly sure her Gatecrasher would always be better if all she wanted was to gain access. But Gatecrasher's big problem was the fact that it was exceedingly blatant. Even Ghostmaker, a program Allina had created specifically to clear all traces of Gatecrasher's use, could not actually manage that. The Razor, though, was subtle enough that it was entirely possible they would be able to access a network quickly and _not_ leave obvious traces.

Al Hanthis' network was not built on TCP/IP's layered topology approach, but Allina thought they had an equivalent to a basic switch, something which existed on the network, but simply routed information about without doing any processing or alteration of the data. After pounding away at the Guard mage's link-ups for the past hours, whoever was running their counter-intrusion might miss a subtle attempt. So she set part of the Hong Kong Beowulf to another attempt at Gatecrasher, while she and HAL began trying to insert Turing's Razor into the Guard network.

It almost worked. For a few seconds, as strange data began flowing into her ad-hoc network, Allina thought she had done it. The code coming down the line was pure unadulterated Al Hanthean, data that HAL dutifully recorded without trying to process or translate it. Her breath caught, and she felt that singing pit in her stomach that preceded ultimate victory…

And then it cut off, replaced by a single line of binary chatter that HAL translated automatically. IM SORRY DAVE IM AFRAID I CANT DO THAT.

Then the connection, all their connections to Al Hanthis, went dead, and Allina's target dropped out of London's skies like a stone.

For a moment, Allina just stared at HAL's projection in shock. She had not only been cut off from the Turing's Razor attempt, but completely, totally severed from her target's implants and the network backing those implants up. Someone had just completely and utterly erased hours of effort with no warning, no possibility of a counter. She could just try again with someone else, but singling out a new target in the morass of hostiles over London would be impossible, at best.

Surprise faded, replaced by a weird thrill. Whoever Halley really was, she was good. Good enough that Allina wanted time to think over her next attempt, time to really analyze and understand the data she had gotten tonight already. That time was not available tonight, so she could not go after another specific target like she had at the start. Getting past Halley's counter-efforts would be a matter of luck, not skill, and Allina wanted to prove which of them was better.

_'Alright, 'Jana-chan,'_ she sent, _'time to stop playing scalpel. Can you re-set the comm-sats for me? I want to update round two for what we just learned.'_

_'It'll take me a couple minutes,'_ 'Jana replied. _'How large an area does the signal need to cover?'_

_'Just London,'_ Allina said, distracted already as she updated the jamming and attack package prepared days before.

It took closer to twenty minutes for Allina to get the programs updated the way she wanted. 'Jana used that time to patch up the Hong Kong Beowulf that would do most of the processing for them, and they were both surprised when she realized someone else, someone in Hong Kong, was doing the same thing.

Just over twenty minutes after getting kicked out of Al Hanthis' network, Allina finished off her updates, and looked up, checking the battlefield. It was still going strong, Guard mages and her teachers flickering about overhead, more Guard mages dodging heavy weapons fire and her classmates below. Allina considered it all for a moment, then grinned in anticipation of the Al Hantheans' coming consternation.

"HAL," She said softly, "initiate Skynet's Howl."

00000

Tired or not, Yussef was starting to feel a little better, at least about his immediate part of the battle. He and Marcel had managed to teleport _below_ the triad, and while that had attracted immediate Seed attention, the two of them had teleported in already going _up_. After the accidental success with the previous triad, he and Marcel had slammed into the lead member of the triad physically before the Guard mages began to react. The one-two strike of Zulfiqar and Arondight, followed by a pair of short-charged Buster Cannons, had launched the man straight up and into the anti-air free-fire zone. It had not been a Spooky that got him, but a swarm of ten or twelve Stinger missiles from the National Guardsmen below had convinced him to teleport out.

The other two had tried to tag-team Marcel, but he and Yussef were well used to one another by now. Arondight cut through the shield that was supposed to separate them, and Yussef's shield blocked the buster from the other Guard mage. The blocking mage was closer, so Yussef lunged at him, with Marcel cutting up and left just behind him. The Guard mages tried to pincer Yussef, but with Marcel guarding his back and front, he was free to concentrate on his attack. A short-charge Buster Cannon disrupted his target's offense, and then Yussef was on him, Zulfiqar swinging in short sharp arcs.

The Guard mage dropped his attempt at a large shield and instead began blocking with his bare hands. The last-ditch shields the Guard had cooked up to imitate the device mages' barrier jackets covered his hands, and while Zulfiquar shattered one per strike, there were a few hundred palm-sized shields wrapped around Yussef's target. Still, the Guard mage fell back, dropping low, and Yussef mentally assigned himself a time-limit. Marcel would keep the other guy off his back long enough, but he only had a few seconds before he would be low enough to risk Seed intervention.

Then the ditz exploded over the harbor, a titanic blast of raw power. It felt terrifyingly similar to the mission to rescue Cid-chan, and it distracted Yussef and Marcel both. Yussef dodged away from his target, looking east to see a shimmering sphere of white fading out, the waters of the harbor – just barely visible at this angle – whipped up into storm-waves. Then it was his turn to get hit with the blue-yellow not-flame. Marcel was right, it felt more like getting sand-blasted than burned as hundreds of impacts tried to scour away Ward of Honor.

Worse, the spell disrupted his senses, visual and magical, disorienting him slightly. He rolled out of the blast area with a surprised shout, whipping Zulfiqar around, as something huge and grey appeared in his vision. He was a little too quick with the blade, just catching the Seed's jaw but not stopping it, and then he shouted in pain as the creature's jaws slammed shut on his wrist. Impossibly hard teeth backed by artificial muscles drove through his worn-down barrier jacket like it wasn't there, through his skin just as easily, and ground against bone. Only Zulfiqar's grip stopped it from taking his hand clean off, catching like a horse's bit though the Seed's teeth dug halfway through his device as well.

00000

Marcel would be the first to admit that he had less personal experience with Laura's unpredictability than Yussef did. Still, he was better prepared for her detonation over the harbor than Yussef had been. In his mind the twin facts that it was Laura and that Natalia was giving her fits basically guaranteed that, at some point, Laura would do something massively dramatic. After the incident where she and Nanoha-sensei blew out a workroom 'accidentally', Marcel was not particularly surprised at the scale of the blast, either. The precise moment of it was a surprise, certainly, but not such that he lost track of the fight.

So he was not as distracted as Yussef when the Laura decided to light up the Tri-State Area. He kept his place and focus, shifting to block the trailing Guard mage's attempt to separate him from Yussef, and saw Yussef's target unload that close-in attack spell. Marcel was not quite quick enough to shield Yussef from the strike, but he had time to set up a massive overhand strike with Arondight, backed by his magic.

The mage caught Marcel's strike on a shield, but Marcel had not been aiming for damage, and Arondight's edge was not sharpened by Marcel's magic. As soon as the blade impacted the shield, the energies flaring along Arondight's spine burst and the weapon accelerated, slamming the Guard mage straight down. The man blasted through the roof of a two story building, terminating his spell, but that impact, more than the rising grey shape, clued in Marcel that they were too low, far too low.

Marcel almost managed to remain calm and logical in the face of his worst nightmare. It was, in a way, the worst nightmare of all of Hayate's students – out of position in front of a charging Seed of Leviathan. A shield, however fast, would have only a slight chance of success. A buster spell would be useless. _Nothing direct,_ was the only coherent thought he managed before Arondight presented, and he took without a thought, a potential course of action.

Carrying through his strike against the Guard mage, he leveled Arondight at where he figured the Seed would be in a couple seconds. He ignored Yussef's shout of surprise and pain, and let his body continue the roll, left hand leaving Arondight's grip to point, fingers spread, at a building miles away in New York City. It was the stuttering line of light that his gaze locked on, and his voice was almost a prayer, "Arondight, Flying Bird Portal."

"Yes, my King," the device replied in a soft Marseille accent, and Marcel felt a horrific amount of power drawn from his linker core and poured through the device.

Two hazy grey fields appeared, one in his line of sight, miles distant and perpendicular to that stuttering line of fire. The other appeared a few meters below and to his right. For about three seconds, out of that hazy grey came a steady stream of twenty millimeter anti-armor rounds, crashing directly into the Seed as it completed its arc and began to descend. The trailer-mounted automated anti-air Gatling, locked onto an airborne target elsewhere, continued to fire its insane rate of fire at whatever it was locked on, but Marcel was forced to cut the portal off after just three seconds.

The Seed jerked at the first impact, then flailed for a second, letting go of Yussef and plummeting earth-ward. Mere proximity to the Seed destabilized the portal, and Marcel was just as glad to let it go before Yussef dropped into the line of fire. Marcel tried to catch Yussef, but the two Guard mages attacked him simultaneously, taking advantage of their sudden advantage. He dodged one buster spell, but the other slammed into his back while he was distracted. Arondight's automatics stopped most of it, and his barrier jacket took the rest, and then the shivering remnants of Laura's magic rippled through the area.

Yussef's training paid off for Marcel, though. Surprised as he was by the second buster, it came from mostly above his position, driving him downward, which was where he wanted to go, in general. He converted the impact into acceleration, avoiding a burst of that not-flame spell just before it would have engulfed him and Yussef. He got an arm around Yussef's waist, and did not bother with trying to arrest their fall, instead pulling a short range teleport to get them clear of the immediate fight.

They popped out low over New York, above one of the hospitals Marcel had ambushed Didier at the day before. There was no ambush this time, and Marcel touched down just beside the ER entrance. At first glance, the place looked like a madhouse, people rushing back and forth dragging wounded walking or pushing gurneys, both loaded and unloaded. But even before Marcel touched down, there was a nurse and a soldier at his side.

"Seed," Marcel told the nurse, "but don't worry about us. I just need a couple minutes of quiet to teleport him out to…"

"No," Yussef rasped, voice harsh. He finally looked up from his injured arm, fixing a rock-steady gaze on the nurse. "There's a Circle healer here?"

The nurse nodded slowly, "Yes, two of them. Let me see your arm, son…"

Yussef slung Zulfiqar over his shoulder and pulled away from Marcel before holding out his injured hand. "I have some internal injuries as well, I think. My back and guts hurt."

The nurse took Yussef's forearm in her hand and frowned as she studied it. "You're not bleeding very much, but… Jesus," her inspection pulled the wound apart, and Marcel felt his stomach heave as he realized he could see the bones of Yussef's wrist. "That's deep," the nurse continued, "but…"

"Minor shields to keep the blood loss to a minimum," Yussef said, "something I put in Zulfiqar's automatics over the summer. I'll keep for a bit, but I need to get back out there."

"Yussef, you know Hayate-sensei's rules for us," Marcel protested. Those rules were direct and simple, if not quite as draconian as her rules for the first-years. 'Injured and out', Yussef had labeled it. Any injury bad enough to need medical attention meant the injured student was to teleport out to the campus, unless the injury was bad enough to need Shamal-sensei's attentions, in which case they were to teleport somewhere safe and call her for help. Hayate-sensei was relying on them to obey that rule, since Tai-yu-sensei and Noriko were fully involved in capturing as many Guard mages as they could, but it would not be long before one of them noticed and pulled Yussef out whatever he wanted.

Yussef shook his head, though. "Not tonight. Too many Guard mages, too few of us. Where are the Circle healers?"

It was not the nurse that answered, but the soldier. "Inside, sir, I'll show you. Ma'am," he touched the nurse's shoulder, "there's another ambulance coming in. I'll see to these two."

The whole time the Circle mage was closing Yussef's wounds – and there were more than just the wrist and internal injuries, reflecting the damage the Seed had done to Zulfiqar – half of Marcel was caught up in a moral quandary. The other half was watching that Circle mage like a hungry hawk watching a rabbit. He was supposed to report Yussef's injury and have him pulled out. It was in the rules they had been given to allow them to assist, and it would keep Yussef safe. Even the Circle mage's healing was not going to completely close those wounds, the man was simply not up to Shamal-baa-chan's or Cid-chan's level.

But fifteen minutes later, when Yussef took to the skies once more, Marcel found himself following, still doubting but following. He simply could not bring himself to betray Yussef.

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Hughes considered Marterosian for a few seconds when the man stood up from his desk and started towards him across the quietly busy command center. Marterosian was coordinating the Circles' monitoring and support efforts outside the immediate battle-zones of New York, London, and the Middle East. He was not handling southern Europe or central Africa, other Adepts had those duties since Al Hanthis could have attacked in those directions as well. But he certainly had more to do than get up and walk back to Hughes' desk.

From the expression on Marterosian's face, Hughes decided almost immediately that it was bad news, and not related to the various attacks. _So,_ he thought, _either Al Hanthis is pulling off a second conquest strike, or they've remotely activated something Containment doesn't want to admit to hiding. _

Marterosian stepped around Hughes' desk and leaned down, while Hughes turned his head towards the younger man. "Something wrong?"

"Yes, Master Adept. Al Hanthis mages have appeared outside the combat zones."

"Where?"

Marterosian paused, then said, "Argentina, the American Mid-west and California, China, India… about a hundred reported sightings so far. Not the Guard, they aren't wearing any sort of uniforms that anyone has reported, but definitely Al Hanthis."

Hughes blinked at that, but he had spent the entire battle so far waiting for the other shoe to drop. Al Hanthis had pulled out too many surprises already, and demonstrated a ruthless disregard for the norms of conventional warfare that he was used to. So he made a 'continue' gesture, and Marterosian obliged, "They're attacking farms, sir. Not the homes, but the storage silos and barns, and setting fire to the crops in the fields. Mage-fires, set-spells that will support and spread the flames despite weather or firefighters. They'll burn out anyway in a couple hours, but…"

"But they'll destroy the fields they're set in, and the neighboring fields," Hughes said, nodding. After a second, though he shook his head and gave a wry smile. "You have to hand it to whoever planned this out, they're a bloody genius at force efficiency. Twice now they've suckered us into static positions then unleashed more forces than we thought they could spare, and each time to powerful effect. Cairo, Hong Kong and North Africa, the Japanese Imperial Family, now this… they're doing an excellent job of force-projection and force-multiplication." He frowned, thinking over the list of targets and methods Al Hanthis had used so far. Something about it was niggling at the back of his mind, something in the pattern that was not what it should have been. But it was not coming forward, so after a few minutes, he ignored it to focus on the immediate issue.

"Marterosian, put out the call to all Circle mages in the attacked areas. They are to rally near each fire, but they are _not_ to engage the Al Hantheans. We don't have Ops mages or wolf-packs out there, so they couldn't stop those strike groups if they tried. Their mission will be to wait until the Al Hantheans leave, then move in and suppress the fires by magic. Get them moving fast, we should be able to minimize the damage."

Marterosian shook his head, "It's not the damage to the crops that needs to be minimized, sir. Some of these sites are public. At least one, in Argentina, already has a news crew on-site. Between this and Japan, they're going to convince the world that they can get anyone, anytime, and even if they don't go for you directly, they can get you indirectly."

"Maybe," Hughes agreed, "but the downside to psychological warfare remains the same, regardless of the combatants." Marterosian frowned and shook his head to indicate he did not understand. "Backlash. Psychological warfare is all about confusion and fear, Marterosian. You make your enemy too confused and too afraid to fight back effectively, make them surrender rather than fight. But for every Vichy France, you get a General McAuliffe. This sort of approach is just as likely to result in stiffer resistance, especially with the outright atrocity of the attack on the Japanese. People can be dismayed and agonized over children dying in war, but to see them murdered in their beds? This latest maneuver is going to provoke a reaction, and it's not going to be well thought-out unless I can convince the Joint Chiefs that Hayate's right about being able to get through Al Hanthis' shield. But that reaction is not going to be surrender, whatever it is, and it's going to make the post-war situation all the worse."

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Author's Notes

So, fourth job in a single year. That's a record for me. Good news, it means I'm no longer unemployed and whining about it. Bad news, it means my schedule's been FUBAR since, basically, last November. I still have not gotten back into a writing schedule like I had in years past (I don't write at lunch any more, for instance), and it'll be a few months before I'm really settled in the new job. But, a couple months between chapters is better than a year, and I've already got a couple pages of the next chapter written out (i.e.: I should have posted this a week or so ago).

Phalanx CIWS/Centurion C-RAM: The Phalanx CIWS (Close In Weapon System, pronounced 'Sea-Whizz') was, for many years, the US Navy's last-ditch close-in air defense system. It incorporated a radar, an infra-red sight, a 20mm Gatling, and an automated threat response system, all of it on a quick-motion turret. It's visible on the ships as a bright white dome-topped cylinder – the radar housing atop the turret – which is usually placed fairly high up in the superstructure. A few years ago, the Navy began partially phasing the Phalanx out, replacing some of them with a longer-ranged missile system – still looks mostly the same, just an eleven-shot box-launcher instead of a big Gatling, and I believe the radar is different as well. The Army, seeing those perfectly good high-rate-of-fire guns sitting around, mounted the entire turret assembly on a flat-bed, hooked up a generator, and parked a bunch of them in Iraq for mortar defense. The resultant Centurion C-RAM (Counter Rocket Artillery Mortar) version is supposed to use high explosive rounds, but for targets like Al Hanthis' Guard, armor-piercing is a safer bet. The 'insane rate of fire' Marcel referenced is between fifty and seventy-five rounds _per_ _second_, depending on how the mount is programmed.

Vichy France / General McAuliffe: Vichy France was the subordinate regime the Nazis installed in France after they took Paris in World War II. While some members of the Vichy government covertly assisted the French Resistance, it is generally accepted as a collaborationist regime. General McAuliffe was in command of the 101st Airborne at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. He and his paras held Bastogne for days despite being entirely surrounded by the Germans. His response to the Germans' demand for his surrender, once Bastogne was surrounded? "Nuts." To this day, the survivors of Bastogne insist they did _not_ need to be rescued by Allied forces.

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Endymion2314: I've actually had several ideas for Laura's death, including one (since discarded) at the climax of this story. My original plan for this story was to have Laura go out in a sacrificial strike to bring down Kriegsen in a particularly poetic way. But my plans for the in-story future evolved rather rapidly to involve the Twilight Paladins in a particular role, which requires Laura's continued existence at least past the end of Endless Waltz. As for Natalia's fatalistic outlook, her own actions and Ahmu's lessons have already demonstrated that there is a fundamental flaw there.

Happerry: Here's 'what happens next' for you, focusing on New York this time.

Spica75: The problem with all the new guns is that they don't have the service life of Ma Deuce. They may be better in technical specs, but I'll be impressed when they still have that reputation after thirty years. I've seen too many 'better' tools that prove lacking in staying power, for a lot of reasons. Of course, I'm an inveterate WWII tech junkie, so, yeah.

Rathmun: Yup, still around, and happy (belated) birthday.

PokemonJoe1: There are any number of ways Laura could improve Death Blossom, but it won't ever be a long-range buster spell. Laura doesn't have Nanoha's level of control – she can contain that level of power, but collating it into a beam is beyond her. Got some plans for Cid-chan to show up next chapter, but Noriko won't appear again until they get back to the Academy.

pfeil: Hope you're still reading.

Kell Shock: It was supposed to be "split into four more". Natalia's been looking through the Null Space, yes, but that's how _all_ the Forecasters' work. Laura's future life-span is worrisome, but I have plans for her kids already, though I may change those due to various issues. As for the world's militaries not being able to hurt a Seed w/ bullets, it's not just that. There are big enough guns – the main cannon on most modern tanks, loaded with anti-tank rounds instead of high-explosive, would splatter a Seed – if it could track around fast enough. Try looking at it from Al Hanthis' side, though – they've never encountered _anyone_ who can take Seed down without mages. Missiles may be expensive, but they're cheaper and faster to produce than mages (or soldiers, for that matter).

MaZe-Pallas: Nanoha won't be a Deva mage, largely because she's already too powerful for me to write easily. I rather imagine that having Nanoha overhead during a battle is rather more like Laura's interference over New York above – the wrath of the gods messing up everyone, rather than just pausing things a moment. I still haven't found a scene to show it that works for me, though. Couple more chances for me to try in this story.

The Mad Metamorphmagus: Last chapter, and this one to an extent, were definitely more action-oriented than character-oriented, though I do get what you mean about characters slipping. In this one, Allina's reaction to losing her connection to Major Ushan was originally another rage-fest, except that I realized she wouldn't react to a loss like that. Getting kicked out of a network is a challenge, not an insult. I'm not going to be spending time on the reactions of anyone at the campus during the fight, though I do have a scene half-planned for when everyone gets home.

Jack Inqu: Of all the attempts I made to write out Nanoha's side of the battle, Yuuno's not-really-a-joke was the only part that felt right, and even then I kept having to re-write it. Last chapter was supposed to be Allison's chance to shine, though I have another scene for her planned next chapter as part of the wrap-up of London and New York. As for Natalia's ability to predict the future, I'm not a big fan of Destiny either. If you think back over everything I've put in this story about how Natalia's eye works, how Ahmu's and the other Forecasters' abilities work, I don't think you'll be too upset.

Jammin-2099: Turns out I didn't use Esien twice. Esien is, in fact, the Master Adept running the Yellowstone Containment Facility. Yuuno's supervisor was Admiral Esoran. Close, but not quite (much to my relief. I hate duplicating names without meaning to, and had no ready excuse as to why…) To be honest, about your previous review's comment on Nanoha's contribution in Academy Blues, it bothers me too, mostly because I originally did screw it up. But, eh, mistakes happen. Thanks for still reading!

FabienLeLez: Sorry for the long delay, but last year was rough. Yuuno's device is, in fact, named 'Desu'. It's not a reference to Rozen Maiden, but the word 'desu' is frequently used by ditzy characters or to indicate ditzy/spaced-out moments. Yuuno really doesn't like having a device, but isn't cruel by nature, so he named it something silly. As I've mentioned to others above about Laura's predicted death, go back and look at how the precognitive ability Natalia is using works – it looks across the nothingness between all dimensions and times.


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